Introduction

Acknowledgements

Crown Copyright material is reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the Queen's Printer for Scotland.

Introduction to Subject

Lord Irving of Lairg wrote the following in 1998 in Modernising Justice: 'The Criminal Justice system exists to help protect us from crime and to ensure that criminals are punished.

The civil justice system is there to help people resolve their disputes fairly and peacefully'.

Someone accused of a criminal offence will find that there is a completely different system of dealing with what is regarded by the legal system and society as a whole as a much more serious issue.