The London School of Economics and Political Science Custodians of continuity in an era of change: An oral history of the everyday lives of Crown Court clerks between 1972 and 2015 Dvora Liberman A thesis submitted to the Department of Law of the London School of Economics for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, London, September 2017. !1 Declaration I certify that the thesis I have presented for examination for the MPhil/PhD degree of the London School of Economics and Political Science is solely my own work. The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without my prior written consent. I warrant that this authorisation does not, to the best of my belief, infringe the rights of any third party. I declare that my thesis consists of 99,228 words. I can confirm that my thesis was copy edited for conventions of language, spelling and grammar by Duncan Taylor. !2 Abstract This thesis investigates the life histories of Crown Court clerks between 1972 and 2015, and has uncovered unheard testimonies of the lived world of law. Drawing on 21 oral history interviews, it is posited that the Crown Court clerk was a pivotal player in the legal system during this period and their contribution to the performance of law has been largely neglected. Though they did not enjoy the economic, social and cultural capital of judges and barristers, or play a central role in the construction and determination of legal issues in hearings, they were chiefly responsible for the smooth functioning of the courtroom, and were constantly working to maintain order and facilitate the flow of proceedings. Court clerks can be characterised as stage managers of the courtroom drama in the sense that the onus was upon them to ensure that all the various props and parties were assembled in the courtroom at the right time, and to direct defendants, witnesses and jurors as to where and when to sit, stand, and what to say at the appropriate moment. Moreover, this thesis asserts that alongside judges and barristers, court clerks were active agents in the perpetuation of traditional practices through their use of official and formal codes of dress, speech and behaviour, and can be perceived as custodians of continuity. This finding is particularly interesting in light of scholarly accounts that have identified a period of radical change to the administration of justice following the founding of the new Courts Service in 1972. It is contended that Crown court clerks were not merely complicit in, but strongly supported a highly ritualised performance of justice. In so doing, they contributed towards upholding the authority and legitimacy of the criminal justice system in ways that have been largely unacknowledged. !3 Acknowledgements I would like to thank my supervisors, Linda Mulcahy and Rob Perks, for their support and advice, and the National Life Stories team of interviewers for sharing their breadth of experience. I would especially like to thank all interviewees who participated in this research project for their time, generosity and willingness to share many aspects of their lives with me, namely, Michael Bishop; John Brindley; Tom Brown; Ron Churcher; David Dawson; Leonard Dolphin; Patricia Douglas; Irene Elliott; Trevor Hall; Keith Harrison; Karen Hazell; Shirley Hill; David Hoad; Rita Holmes; Valerie Jerwood; Michael McKenzie; Raymond Potter; Jim Reid; Pamela Sanderson; Geoff Walker; and Bill Young. Without their cooperation, hospitality and openness this research would not have been possible, and I am enormously grateful. !4 Table of Contents Abstract 3 Acknowledgements 4 Chapter One Introduction 8 The current state of the literature 8 Historical background 14 Court clerks under the Assize system 15 Shifts in thinking about the organisation of the justice system 18 The implementation of the new Courts Service and implications for court clerks 23 The origins of this research project 26 Research questions 27 The thesis 28 The structure of this thesis 29 Notes 32 Chapter Two Oral history methodology and research methods 39 Introduction 39 The uses and motivations of oral history 40 Life history narratives 42 The use of life history narratives to explore memory, subjectivity and culture 44 The life history interview as a relationship and performance 47 Interview preparation, sampling, the actual sample, and archiving the interview data 58 The sample set 64 Courts respondents worked in around the country, pre and post the Assize system 65 Interpreting and analysing life history narratives 66 Conclusion 71 Notes 72 Chapter Three Aspirations and values: Where did Crown Court clerks come from? 76 Introduction 76 Upwardly mobile 77 !5 The concept of public service 92 Accepting and conforming to social systems 96 Discipline at school and at home 98 Faith in god 101 Conclusion 107 Notes 108 Chapter Four Order in court: The demands of the court clerk’s role 114 Introduction 114 Maintaining order in the court – orchestrating hearings and ceremonies 115 Stage management 118 ‘Bit-part player’ – speaking publicly in court 122 The ‘eyes and ears’ of the court 123 Gatekeeping and enforcing courtroom etiquette 125 Support from ushers and other colleagues 126 Serving the judge 127 Essential case documentation: Preparing case papers and drafting orders 131 Emotional labour 135 Strategies for coping 140 Conclusion 146 Notes 147 Chapter Five Key changes to the court clerk’s post between 1972 and 2015 154 Introduction 154 Immediate impact of the Courts Act 1971 on court clerks 155 The establishment of a centralised and reorganised administrative system 155 The recruitment of Crown Court clerks to the new system and opportunities for promotion 158 The ending of the itinerant Assize lifestyle 160 Diverse reactions to the abolition of the Assize and Quarter Sessions courts 163 The deskilling and degradation of the court clerk’s role 165 Drafting indictments 166 Assessing and determining barristers’ and solicitors’ fees 169 Computerisation and digital communication technologies 174 Live video link (live link) 178 Computerisation, digital communication technologies, deskilling and upskilling 182 Depersonalisation of the court clerk’s role and other elements of the administration of justice 183 Conclusion 188 Notes 190 !6 Chapter Six Performing authority: Custodians of continuity 195 Introduction 195 The performance of justice 196 Official court dress 199 Speech and demeanour 208 Ceremony, pageantry and ritual 215 Conclusion 226 Notes 226 Chapter Seven Conclusion 233 Notes 241 Bibliography 242 Appendices 286 Appendix A: Commission of Assize address 287 Appendix B: The Bidding Prayer 288 Appendix C: List of Clerks of Assize in England and Wales in 1971 290 Appendix D: Interview question structure 291 Appendix E: Approach letter 303 Appendix F: Project information sheet 305 Appendix G: British Library oral history recording agreement 309 Appendix H: British Library oral history information leaflet 311 Appendix I: British Library oral history interview summary guidelines 316 Appendix J: Sample interview summary 325 Appendix K: Photo of the Crown Court clerk’s wig 339 Appendix L: Photos of Crown Court clerks in their official court dress 339 Appendix M: Sample crib cards 342 Appendix N: Letters Patent 345 Appendix O: Images of Assize pageantry 347 Appendix P: Royal ceremonial opening of the Law Courts in Liverpool in 1984 349 !7 Chapter One Introduction The current state of the literature The first chapter introduces readers to this research project on Crown Court clerks and the scope of its inquiry. It briefly outlines the current state of the literature in the field of legal life writing, overviews the scholarship related to various types of clerks in the legal system, and identifies a notable absence concerning Crown Court clerks in particular. The historical background of the administration of justice is then presented in order to provide the necessary context to this study’s period of focus, namely between 1972 and 2015. The origins of this research project; key questions posed; the central thesis; and the structure of this monograph are then addressed in turn. Crown Court clerks have played a pivotal role in trials of the most serious criminal offences. Yet despite their importance, they have to date received very little attention from scholars. This study aims to redress the under-representation of Crown Court clerks in legal scholarship and gain insight into their everyday lives over the last 45 years. It has used oral history and socio-legal methodology, and more specifically, has sought out, recorded, and analysed their life histories. The existing literature tends to concentrate on elite players in the legal system, and typically, white, male and heterosexual judges and barristers (Sugarman, 2015, p.13; Mulcahy and Sugarman, 2015, p.1). Amongst the writings that focus on the elite, a typology consisting of five broad categories can be discerned.1 Firstly, there are autobiographies or memoirs written by judges and barristers. Typically written later in life, they are reflective accounts of formative events; how they came to the bar and bench; and memorable colleagues and cases they adjudicated or were involved with. Most commonly, these narratives are structured chronologically and divided into time periods, life phases, or pertinent themes. Notable examples are: Lord Hailsham’s A Sparrow’s Flight (1990); Michael Mansfield’s Memoirs of a Radical Lawyer (2009); !8