OBJECTION,
SUSTAINED!

Peter Wilson of Nevett Ford

What is your specialist area?

My specialist area is litigation, which means to take legal action.

What is litigation?

It is where people or parties come together and dispute with one another with the help of legal aid without having to go to court. It is an area in which lawyers have to take part in when a case goes to court. It also involves alternative dispute resolution mechanisms such as mediation.

What are the most common legal problems facing youth today?

· Litigation
· Driving offences, eg. Speeding, Drink driving .05.
· Criminal law
· Information Technology
· Business Transactions
· Family law
· Employment disputes

Is legal aid readily available to people?

It is readily available in the way that people can go to a lawyer to enquire about legal aid. It's availability is limited because of the dollars that is provided for legal aid. It depends on the type of legal action that may be taken.

What are the rights of a defendant?

· Innocent until proven guilty, meaning proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
· Person charged for an offence is entitled to protection from the law, cant be put away, or convicted without somebody, a judge or jury members.
· Not obliged to give evidence if they don't want to give any information to police.
· Entitled to know what the case against them is before they have to answer.
· Examine witnesses/cross examine call other witnesses.
· Right to see all of the documents for prosecution that they're going to be reliant upon.
· Right to see all of the evidence for prosecution.
· Not ambushed.
· Defendant knows all of the information used against them.

On average how many cases are settled out of court?

Civil cases have a very large percentage that are resolved before going to court or finally go to court, they start, but don't finish and settle along the way.

Are cases of drug and alcohol crimes on the rise?

Anecdotally yes. Cases involving drugs are on the rise, however cases involving alcohol are not increasing a great deal.

There are less offences related to alcohol because of the proper policing of the problem.

However, there are a lot of cases coming to court which are directly drug related, eg. taking drugs, selling drugs, trafficking drugs, and indirectly for crimes because of drug habits.

All workers involved in the legal system would say a large percentage of cases concerning drugs mostly involve young people.

How does the "No Win, No Charge guarantee" work?

A Lawyer undertaking to investigate the representation of the case for you, may believe the case can be won. But if per chance the case may loose, the lawyer wont charge the client.

Lawyers see people who have a potential claim, then make an analysis whether or not case can be won. If it's got a reasonable chance then they'll fund the case themselves, try and get that person access to justice and hopefully win the case, then the opposition will pay the bill, but not if the case is lost .

What is your advice to young people who may be facing a legal problem?

Get advice. Its always better to seek advice before you get into a legal problem. If you have a problem, don't make it worse by not getting advice because there may be an answer to your situation.

The law can be quite complex, and harsh at times so generally people facing a legal issue need some form of guidance. Ignorance is no excuse.

Rachael Lynch
Youth@bility Reporter