Solicitors support move to be included in jury service

Solicitors have voiced support for government plans to make jury service obligatory for judges and lawyers.In a speech last week responding to the Auld report, Home Secretary David Blunkett said he wanted to prevent the middle classes and professionals avoiding jury service.Malcolm Fowler, partner at Birmingham firm Jonas Roy Bloom, and a member of the Law Society's criminal law committee, said: 'Jury service has become something of a spectator sport and it has become acceptable in society to get out of it.

I think this is a sad state of affairs and for a jury to be totally representative of society it must include professionals like solicitors.'He added that he understood some lawyers might have to defer sitting on a jury because of client commitments - but that they should not be excused completely.Rodney Warren, vice-chairman of the Criminal Law Solicitors Association, said it would be hypocritical of lawyers to object to plans to scrap the defendant's right to jury trial in some cases, but then say they did not wish to sit on one.'I also don't believe lawyers would be in an advantageous position or hold unfair sway over other jurors in the jury room,' he said.

'The jury's decision is not to consider elements of the law, anyway, but to consider the facts.'

Andrew Towler