klmnz's review against another edition
3.0
When I first started listening to this, I wondered why it was not highly rated. I still think this is very much worth reading, and the majority of the book is excellent and very interesting. However, I cannot rate it higher than this as:
1. The author failed to convince me that the adversarial system is superior to the inquisitorial system. His arguments mostly hinged on how the current failings of the system in the UK would be even worse under the inquisitorial system; he did not make a strong argument against a better protected and resourced inquisitorial system as the superior option.
2. The discussions around the impact of the adversarial system on victims and especially in relation to sexual offence cases completely failed to even mention the wider societal and cultural aspects relevant to how we treat sexual offences and victims in court processes, including a defense of the inclusion of previous sexual history in evidence. He argued that current protections are sufficient and only essential character evidence is included without once referencing that the people deciding what is essential are almost entirely male and without acknowledging the cultural lens through which woman who have a sexual history have long been viewed. The same argument he used against the inquisitorial system - that humans are falliable and cannot be objective - was used to defend these practices in adversarialism.
So read this book with this in mind. Other than these sections I really enjoyed it and there's a very strong argument for the role of a well-resourced and protected justice system in democratic societies.
1. The author failed to convince me that the adversarial system is superior to the inquisitorial system. His arguments mostly hinged on how the current failings of the system in the UK would be even worse under the inquisitorial system; he did not make a strong argument against a better protected and resourced inquisitorial system as the superior option.
2. The discussions around the impact of the adversarial system on victims and especially in relation to sexual offence cases completely failed to even mention the wider societal and cultural aspects relevant to how we treat sexual offences and victims in court processes, including a defense of the inclusion of previous sexual history in evidence. He argued that current protections are sufficient and only essential character evidence is included without once referencing that the people deciding what is essential are almost entirely male and without acknowledging the cultural lens through which woman who have a sexual history have long been viewed. The same argument he used against the inquisitorial system - that humans are falliable and cannot be objective - was used to defend these practices in adversarialism.
So read this book with this in mind. Other than these sections I really enjoyed it and there's a very strong argument for the role of a well-resourced and protected justice system in democratic societies.
bossmoo's review against another edition
not what I thought I was getting. I was expecting anecdotes and I got a history lesson. each chapter should not be 20 hours long. I know its non fiction but it was an info dump and no real life examples which I thought I was signing up for.
vickip90's review against another edition
Found it to slow and rather wordy. Whilst others may enjoy it, it wasn't my thing which is a shame as I really wanted to like it
sinead13's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
vimes_48's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0