The Crown Court for the whole of Derbyshire sits on the Morledge in the centre of Derby, in the same building as the county and family courts, and anyone charged with a serious offence anywhere from Glossop to Swadlincote will eventually stand in it. Derby's criminal defence solicitors know its judges, its listing habits and the length of its backlog.
Before the Crown Court comes the police station, where cases are won or lost. Derbyshire Constabulary's custody suites hold people from the city's weekend arrests, from the A38, A50 and A52 motoring cases that fill the magistrates' lists, from drug supply along the M1 corridor and from the rural and wildlife crime of the Peak. Free legal advice there is a right regardless of income, and using it changes what follows: whether there is a charge at all, whether a caution is offered, and what the prosecution can rely on later.
The magistrates' court in Derby, with a second court at Chesterfield for the north of the county, deals with most cases: drink and drug driving, assault, public order after Derby County matches at Pride Park, shoplifting and benefit fraud. Derby adds its own specialisms. Health and safety prosecutions from the city's factories and building sites are technical and expensive to defend; export-control and corporate investigations touch the aerospace and defence supply chain; and two prisons on the county's western edge, Foston Hall and Sudbury, keep solicitors on the road to see clients.
A means test applies to legal aid in the magistrates' court and the Crown Court may ask for contributions, but most defendants qualify, and every Derby firm with a criminal contract takes its turn on the duty rota. Private fees should be quoted per stage, and motoring cases are often fixed.
The criminal defence firms below serve Derby and the county, verified firms first, nearest next. Background reading: what criminal law involves, free legal help and the general criminal law solicitors page.
