They gave an invited presentation to the LawWorks Student Conference 2012 on Saturday 10th November at the University of Manchester. Their presentation centred on the pioneering work of the Innocence Network UK (INUK) and the University of Bristol Innocence Project.
LawWorks, formerly the Solicitors Pro Bono Group (SPBG), is a charity which aims to provide free legal help to individuals and community groups who cannot afford to pay for it and who are unable to access legal aid.
INUK is an umbrella organisation for 26 member innocence projects in UK universities who provide pro bono casework investigations to alleged victims of wrongful conviction who claim that they are factually innocent.
The University of Bristol Innocence Project is the first innocence project in the UK. It aims to educate undergraduate and postgraduate students in the Law School and SPAIS about the wrongful conviction of the innocent and the deficiencies of the criminal justice system through their work on cases of prisoners maintaining innocence who meet the casework criteria of the Innocence Network UK (INUK).
More specifically, the University of Bristol Innocence Project offers pro bono assistance to prisoners who fall into all of the following categories:
- Prisoners with a declaration of factual innocence, as opposed to claims of a procedural miscarriage of justice;
- Prisoners who have exhausted the normal appeals process;
- Prisoners who have no legal representation, or whose solicitors have granted permission for us to assist.
It is important to note that the University of Bristol Innocence Project is NOT a campaign or victim support organisation and does NOT give legal advice, which will always be given by practicing lawyers where appropriate.
Further information on INUK
Further information on the University of Bristol Innocence Project