The Rule of Law and the Necessity of Truthful Evidence in Court Proceedings

Recently concerns have been raised about whether the principle of the rule of law has been eroded. These concerns have led to the House of Lords Constitution Committee investigating the extent to which the rule of law remains a fundamental and respected value.

Understanding the Rule of Law

While the rule of law as a concept has ancient roots, there is no single definition of it. In today’s society it includes several essential elements:

• Legality: Laws must be clear, well-publicised, and apply to everyone.
• Legal Certainty: Laws must be fair and consistently enforced.
• Accountability: Everyone, including government officials, must be accountable under the law.
• Fair Legal Processes: Courts must be independent, and legal procedures transparent and fair.
• Protection of Rights: The legal system must safeguard fundamental human rights.

Central to the rule of law is the idea that truth and justice go hand in hand, i.e. in order for justice to be served, the evidence presented in court must be truthful and complete.

Truthful evidence is important for numerous reasons, but not least:

• Integrity of the Courts: The credibility of courts centres on the truthfulness of evidence and the giving of false evidence undermines trust in the judicial system.
• Protecting the Innocent: Truthful evidence ensures a greater certainty that innocent people are not wrongfully convicted and that the guilty are accurately identified.
• Ensuring Fairness: Justice must be fair. Truthful evidence helps ensure that all parties receive a fair trial.

To maintain trust in the judicial process strict rules and penalties for perjury and giving of false evidence are imposed by our justice system in England and Wales. Witnesses, both lay and expert, give evidence under oaths, and legal professionals are bound by ethical codes to present accurate evidence.

Concerns about the giving of truthful evidence have been highlighted in the press recently following MI5, the UK's domestic intelligence agency, being found to have provided false information in court.

MI5 Case

In the MI5 case, the BBC revealed that the Government Agency had lied to three courts regarding a neo-Nazi state agent who was prosecuted for abuse of women.

The consequences of MI5's actions are significant and underscore the importance of holding to account those who give untruthful evidence at Court in order to maintain the integrity of the justice system:

By giving evidence which was found not to be true and accurate MI5’s actions have damaged public trust in both the agency and the judicial system.

Giving false evidence will clearly lead to legal consequences; false evidence can lead to miscarriages of justice, questions about court decisions and the need for retrials which have a knock-on effect to an already stretched criminal court system.

The MI5 case has highlighted the need for strong oversight to ensure that government agencies are accountable and follow legal and ethical standards. 

Outside of the MI5 case specifically, where the High Court has ordered a “robust and independent” investigation into the how the false evidence was given before any decisions are made regarding the issue of proceedings for contempt of court, the court has numerous sanctions at its disposal should it be established that false evidence has been given as part of the trial:

• Perjury is defined as knowingly giving false evidence under oath and attracts a prison sentence of up to 7 years or a fine, or both.
• Perverting the course of justice is defined as conduct which would interfere with the way justice is administered and can result in life imprisonment, although more usually sentences are between a few months and a number of years depending on the severity of the actions which lead to the sanction being imposed.
• Contempt of court includes any act which disrupts or undermines the integrity or authority of the court and attracts a prison sentence of up to 2 years and / or a fine

Comment

Steve Rollason of our Regulatory and Criminal Team comments:

“The rule of law is essential to ensure the administration of fair and equitable justice. 

“As part of the delivery of such a justice system, truthful evidence is crucial to maintaining its integrity. 

“The MI5 case is a stark reminder that the principles of the rule of law apply equally and require robust institutional accountability to maintain public trust in the legal system.”