A phone rings at three in the morning: a relative is in the custody suite at Elland Road and the police want to interview them at eight. Whatever the allegation and whatever the family's income, that person is entitled to a solicitor at the police station for free, either the duty solicitor or a firm of their own choosing, and what is said or not said in that first interview will shape everything that follows. A criminal law solicitor in Leeds will find out what the police are alleging before the interview starts and advise whether to answer questions, give a prepared statement or say nothing.
From the police station, cases go to Leeds Magistrates' Court on Westgate, where the great majority are finished, and the more serious ones are sent on to the Crown Court at the Leeds Combined Court Centre on Oxford Row. The city's criminal caseload has a recognisable shape: violence and public order from the bars of Call Lane and the Headrow, drug supply cases, domestic abuse allegations, football-related offences on match days at Elland Road, and motoring cases from the M1, the M62 and the city's growing number of cameras. Leeds firms also see a steady run of fraud, regulatory and professional disciplinary cases, reflecting the number of financial businesses and NHS staff in the city.
Legal aid is available in Leeds for most criminal cases. In the magistrates' court it depends on a means test; in the Crown Court almost everyone qualifies, though some pay contributions that are returned if they are acquitted. Private clients, including most people facing motoring charges, should ask for a fixed fee for each stage of the case.
Criminal defence solicitors across Leeds are listed after this guide, verified firms first. See what criminal law involves, free legal help and the general criminal law solicitors page.
