Trial Sequence, Burdens, Jury Control and Advocacy: Introduction

A criminal trial asks whether the prosecution has proved the offence charged against this defendant. It is not a general investigation of whether the defendant is a good person, and it is not a requirement that the defendant prove innocence. The useful method is forum → decision-maker → issue → burden and standard → current stage → lawful next step. This chapter turns that method into an ordered account of an ordinary contested trial in England and Wales.

Where this chapter fits. First-hearing and plea decisions explain how the case reached this court: revisit Deep Dives 3–4 for that background. Deep Dive 5 explains preparation, disclosure and the indictment. An indictment is the formal charging document for trial in the Crown Court; a count is an individual charge within it. Disclosure makes material available under the applicable duties; it does not, by itself, make that material evidence at trial. Deep Dives 6–9 explain the detailed evidence and witness rules which this chapter puts into procedural order. You also need the elements of the charged offence and any relevant defence from Criminal Liability.

What you should be able to decide. Identify who decides a legal objection and who decides a disputed fact; distinguish raising an issue from proving it; select the proper next step when the prosecution closes; explain the defendant’s evidence choice without reversing the burden; recognise a lawful verdict; and distinguish robust advocacy from misleading the court. Deep Dive 11 takes over at sentencing. Deep Dive 12 deals separately with challenges to decisions: this trial chapter does not substitute one generic “appeal” for the different routes.