Joined in 2023 
82 
63 About this deal
As someone in the legal field and who read English Law (LLB) and currently working my way to get qualified soon (BPTC), this book was tremendously interesting and beyond amazing. I was hooked and addicted to reading it and it consumed me like an addiction. A MURDER WITHOUT A BODY. One day retired betting shop manager Don Banfield went into his local police station and said: 'I think my wife is trying to kill me'. He then disappeared. Did the police have enough evidence to charge his wife without finding his body? They thought so. Were they right? PRIVATE CLIENTS. Clegg takes on private clients, often pre-charge. 'If I feel that the police case is weak I may make representations to the Crown Prosecution Service arguing that the evidence against my client, as disclosed to me, does not meet the threshold required for charging.'
THE CHILLENDEN MURDERS. Sometimes a barrister feels he will win a case. When he acts for Michael Stone, Clegg feels the dice are loaded against him. Stone, a heroin addict, is arrested in 1997 and charged with the murders of Lin and Megan Russell and the attempted murder of Josie Russell in KentIt was also really interesting to read a book from ‘the other side’, from a defence perspective rather than prosecution. This was particularly true in the Miss Yeates murder trial, where he was on the defence team. I found myself on a couple of occasions comparing it to a number of FBI heavy novels I’ve read (Mindhunter springs to mind), and seeing the various methods employed by both, and the differences they have. It was fascinating. William Clegg QC is very much anti capital punishment because of possible miscarriages of justice, and I thought he did a good job of putting his reasons for this across. Clegg has worked on some of the most horrific murder cases in recent history as a defence lawyer, as well as some other really interesting cases such as WW2 war crimes. He tells these cases as intriguing stories, but in a clearly factual and objective way. I really like the personal story angle, describing his relatively humble beginnings to achieving great success in his legal career. There are also chapters that give an insight into the work of a barrister, and he ends with an important commentary on the current crisis facing the legal profession, which is something that potentially puts the principles of justice in this country at risk. The cases where he identified miscarriages of justice that arose (and continue to arise) from police investigations highlight why we need good lawyers and a robust criminal justice system. The great virtue of this utterly compelling book is that Bill Clegg QC tells it as it is. Now, in the terrible chaos engulfing a great profession and on his way to the top. A life of a top criminal advocate within a profession he loves and adorns, with many high profile cases well summarised. Written for the interested non-lawyer, it has an excellent structure of career progression and specific cases combined together, chapter by chapter. It reads like the man: direct, clear, properly combative, reasonable and devoid of artificial rhetorical. Under the Wig is a memoir of a famous British barrister, William Clegg, whose 40 years experience in criminal law includes defending clients in more than 100 murder trials.
While "Under the Wig" may be most appealing to readers interested in law or criminal justice, I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a well-written memoir. The book is informative, engaging, and emotionally resonant, and it's not hard to see why it has received such high praise. There is much more to justify his conclusion: it is absolutely no exaggeration to say that the profession is in crisis. So it is and we should shout that from the rooftops. And the more that leading lawyers beat that drum, the better chance of reform. What would Jeremy Bentham make of our shoddy slide into mediocrity by default and wilful underfunding!Murder, though, is different.” Clients don’t admit to murder, but if they admit to the killing at all it is in the hope of relying on a defence, such as provocation or diminished responsibility, which will reduce the offence to manslaughter, or even self-defence which will exonerate them completely. The writer, an accomplished barrister, comes across as a humble and kind individual. For clients that can't afford the huge legal fees, he sometimes represent them pro bono. He doesn't try to justify the heinous crimes committed by some of his clients but in certain chapters, he explains how upbringing, mental condition, occupation etc could lead to someone committing a serious crime. Most importantly, he shares to readers not only cases that he won but also cases he lost. In fact, he admits that he lost roughly 40% of cases he represented.
Clegg's writing style is clear and concise, which makes the complex legal terminology and jargon easy to follow. The book covers a wide range of cases, from high-profile murder trials to lesser-known cases, providing a comprehensive overview of the criminal justice system.And then all the reasons: a decade of government cuts… for lawyers have fallen out of favour with the Treasury. And other woes: court staffing has been reduced and the budget for maintaining the courts has fallen. Stories of leaking roofs, toilets that do not work and heating and air conditioning systems that are broken. In addition to his legal experiences, Clegg also writes about his personal life, including his struggles with depression and anxiety. These personal anecdotes bring a humanizing touch to the book and make it more than just a dry exploration of the law.
Great Deal 
New Comment