Question 1

Can I find out if someone has been convicted of a crime?

Accepted Answer

There is no public register of criminal convictions in the UK. Criminal hearings are usually held in public, so you can attend, and the court and tribunal hearings service shows upcoming lists for courts in England and Wales. Lists show names and hearing times, not outcomes. A basic DBS check can only be requested on yourself, or by an employer with your consent. Police can disclose information in set cases: the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme ("Clare's Law") and the child sex offender disclosure scheme ("Sarah's Law"). Courts can impose reporting restrictions, and children in the youth court are normally anonymous by law, so publishing names can be an offence. Convictions also become spent under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act.

Question 2

Are employment tribunal decisions published?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Written judgments from employment tribunals in England, Wales and Scotland are published in the employment tribunal decisions database on GOV.UK, searchable by name, date and type of claim. Employment Appeal Tribunal decisions are on GOV.UK and Find Case Law. Northern Ireland has its own industrial tribunals, with decisions published separately. For how many claims succeed, use the Ministry of Justice's quarterly tribunal statistics , which show claims received, cases waiting and outcomes by jurisdiction (unfair dismissal, discrimination and so on). Most claims never reach a hearing: many are settled through Acas, withdrawn or struck out, so the share "successful at hearing" is a small part of all outcomes. A single claim can also include several complaints, which counts are based on.

Question 3

What is the average prison sentence in the UK?

Accepted Answer

For England and Wales, the Ministry of Justice publishes the average custodial sentence length (ACSL) every quarter in Criminal Justice Statistics , broken down by offence group, court and offender characteristics. The latest edition, published 30 July 2026, covers April 2025 to March 2026. Its data tools let you look up a specific offence such as manslaughter, robbery or assault. ACSL counts only fixed-length (determinate) prison sentences: life and other indeterminate sentences are excluded, as are suspended sentences. It measures the sentence handed down, not the time served, as most prisoners are released on licence part-way through. Scotland publishes average sentence lengths in its Criminal Proceedings in Scotland statistics. See our MoJ statistics guide .

Question 4

How do I find UK Supreme Court cases and judgments?

Accepted Answer

The UK Supreme Court's case pages list its cases since it opened in 2009, with a plain-English summary of the issue, hearing dates, the judgment, and a press summary. You can filter by status, such as cases awaiting judgment. Judgments are also on Find Case Law with a neutral citation like [2025] UKSC 1. It is the final court of appeal for all UK civil cases and for criminal cases from England, Wales and Northern Ireland; most Scottish criminal appeals end at the High Court of Justiciary. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 caps it at 12 full-time equivalent judges, called Justices. The Court cannot strike down Acts of Parliament. For a ruling, quote the judgment itself rather than a summary of it.

Question 5

Where can I find UK court judgments online?

Accepted Answer

Judgments from courts and tribunals in England and Wales are published free on Find Case Law , run by The National Archives. It covers the UK Supreme Court and Privy Council from 2009, the Court of Appeal from the early 2000s, the High Court, the Upper Tribunals and the Employment Appeal Tribunal, plus some Crown Court, County Court and Family Court judgments. Search by party name, neutral citation (such as [2024] UKSC 1), court or date. Since 19 April 2022 judgments have been sent to The National Archives directly by the courts. It is not a complete record: most cases in magistrates' courts, the Crown Court and the County Court end without a published judgment. See our guide to court and legislation records .

Question 6

Where can I find the sentencing guidelines for an offence?

Accepted Answer

The Sentencing Council publishes every guideline used by courts in England and Wales, free and in full, for both the Crown Court and the magistrates' courts. Each offence guideline takes the judge through steps: how serious the harm and culpability were, a starting point and range, aggravating and mitigating factors, and a reduction for a guilty plea. Courts must follow relevant guidelines unless it would be contrary to the interests of justice. The Council is an independent public body; its members are mostly judges and magistrates. A guideline range is not the same as the sentence actually served, and the maximum penalty is set by the Act creating the offence. Scotland has its own Scottish Sentencing Council, and Northern Ireland follows its own sentencing guidance.

Question 7

What is the conviction rate in the UK?

Accepted Answer

There are two official measures for England and Wales, and they differ. The Crown Prosecution Service publishes a conviction rate in its quarterly data summaries : the share of its completed prosecutions that end in a conviction, with separate figures for rape, domestic abuse and other crime types. These are management information and can be revised. The Ministry of Justice publishes a "conviction ratio", convictions divided by prosecutions for an offence over a year, in Criminal Justice Statistics. Because trials can span years, the people convicted are not always those prosecuted in that year. Neither figure is the share of reported crimes ending in conviction. For that, start from Home Office crime outcomes, which show how many recorded offences lead to a charge. For rape claims, check which of these three measures is being quoted.

Question 8

How much does the UK spend on legal aid?

Accepted Answer

For England and Wales, the Ministry of Justice and Legal Aid Agency publish legal aid statistics every quarter, showing workload and spending for criminal legal aid (police station advice, magistrates' and Crown Court representation) and civil legal aid (family, housing, immigration and more). An annual edition gives yearly totals. A cyber-attack on Legal Aid Agency systems in May 2025 disrupted data collection, and the bulletin lists which series are still incomplete, so check its notes before comparing years. Who qualifies is set by means and merits tests, explained on GOV.UK. Scotland's legal aid is run by the Scottish Legal Aid Board and Northern Ireland's by the Legal Services Agency, each publishing its own figures.

Question 9

How do I check if a UK law is in force?

Accepted Answer

Look the Act up on legislation.gov.uk , the official home of UK legislation run by The National Archives, and open the "Latest available (Revised)" version. It shows the text with amendments made so far, notes on which provisions are in force, and a timeline so you can view a section as it stood on an earlier date. An Act can come into force on Royal Assent, on a set date, or in stages through commencement regulations made by ministers. The commencement section near the end of the Act explains which applies. Check the "Changes to legislation" banner: the editorial team aims to add new amendments within three months, so recent changes may not yet appear in the text. The "as enacted" version shows the law as passed, not as it stands now.

Question 10

Where can I find Scottish and Northern Ireland court judgments?

Accepted Answer

Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own court systems, and their judgments are mostly not on Find Case Law. The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service publishes opinions from the Court of Session, High Court of Justiciary and sheriff courts, and posts daily court rolls. The Judiciary NI website publishes decisions from Northern Ireland's Court of Appeal, High Court and other courts. For statistics, the Scottish Government publishes Criminal Proceedings in Scotland (convictions and sentences), and Northern Ireland's Department of Justice publishes court and prosecution statistics. Scots law differs from English law in procedure and many offences, so a figure or ruling from one jurisdiction may not apply in another.

Question 11

Where can I find family court statistics?

Accepted Answer

The Ministry of Justice publishes Family Court Statistics Quarterly for England and Wales. It covers new cases and disposals for public law (care proceedings), private law (child arrangements between parents), divorce, financial remedies, domestic violence orders, adoption and the Court of Protection, with average case durations. The April to June 2026 edition, published 24 September 2026, gives the latest figures and data tables, including a breakdown by court. The headline timeliness measure is how many weeks a case takes from start to disposal, and the legal time limit for care cases is 26 weeks, which a judge can extend. Figures for the latest quarter are often revised, and parties' legal representation is also recorded. Some Family Court judgments are published on Find Case Law.

Courts, judgments and the law: your questions answered