Watch a trial at court

Hi there i would like to go watch a trial at court as it could be useful as I could see barristers and what they truly do. Does anyone know how it works and should I be their for when the court opens? What should I do as previously they said they are back running now to come watch trials and that I should turn up on the day and I will get information. If anyone has previously gone to watch how does it work?

Hi Hailey629,

Yes you should be able to go to your local court now and sit in the public gallery to watch the cases in open court. As not all cases are public, the best way to go about this is to visit the reception desk when you first go in and ask which court rooms you will be allowed to sit in; if the court is a small one it may not have a reception desk but instead you will need to seek out the 'Usher', this is the person who calls the cases in and will often be seen walking around with a clipboard or seen going round groups checking their names. Often cases are listed from 10am to 12pm-ish, then 1pm to 4pm but may vary depending on the court. I would advise that you are at court before these times.

You can also see the Supreme Court cases online: https://www.supremecourt.uk/live/court-01.html or visit the court in person.

Courtserve is also a good service to sign up to: https://www.courtserve.net/

Hope that helps.

Nic
Student Ambassador at The University of Law

Hi Nic

Can I go to any courts or is it specifically like crown courts/magistrate courts. I want the chance to possibly watch a criminal trial so where courts wise might be best to visit if you may know? Thank you for the links too! How long do trials usually take too will I be their for a few hours or for the whole day?