Are your experts Section 12(2) approved?

Yes, the great majority of our criminal panel is s.12(2) approved, and we confirm approval status on every shortlist. For Approved Clinician status (required for s.37 hospital order recommendations) we filter accordingly at instruction stage.

Can you accept urgent fitness-to-plead instructions before a trial date?

Yes. Urgent fitness-to-plead reports are routine work for the panel and we can usually arrange assessment in custody or in the community within a week, with the report completed within 2–5 working days of assessment.

How quickly can a report be delivered?

Standard turnaround is 1–2 weeks from receipt of the bundle and access to the assessee. Urgent reports can be delivered in 2–5 working days where a Crown Court trial date, tribunal listing or interim hearing requires it. We will tell you on day one whether the deadline is realistic.

How are fees calculated?

We agree a fixed fee for the report and any addendum, joint statement work and CMC/court attendance up front. Fees reflect the complexity, the volume of records and the urgency. We will provide a written quote that supports a Legal Aid prior authority application where required.

Can the expert be instructed as a Single Joint Expert?

Yes. The majority of our consultants accept SJE instructions and are experienced in dealing with joint letters of instruction, Part 35 questions from both sides, and joint reports with experts of like discipline.

Is in-person assessment essential?

Most assessments can be conducted by secure video, which keeps costs and timescales down and avoids travel. In-person assessment is arranged where the case calls for it, for example where capacity, malingering, or a child or learning-disabled assessee is involved, and across all the UK regions we cover.

What happens if the report is challenged at court?

The instructed expert remains responsible for the case end-to-end, including responding to Part 35 questions, attending the joint experts' discussion, signing the joint statement, and giving live evidence. There is no handover to a different expert at trial.

Case type

Criminal Law

Criminal psychiatric instructions cover fitness to plead, mental state at the time of the offence, diminished responsibility, insanity, automatism, hospital orders under the Mental Health Act, sentencing mitigation and dangerousness assessments. Many require a Section 12(2) approved psychiatrist.

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Use this category when…

You need to map a court order or letter from counsel to the right report
You're confirming whether a psychiatric expert (rather than a psychologist) is the right discipline
You want a fixed quote and a realistic deadline before instructing

What to send with your enquiry

A short summary plus the items below is enough for us to match an expert and confirm the deadline — you don't need the full bundle to get a quote.

Short case summary and the questions you want answered
Hearing or listing date and jurisdiction
GP and psychiatric records (full set where available)
Witness statements, schedules of loss or threshold documents
Any prior expert reports
Court order granting permission to instruct (family / Court of Protection)

Overview

Criminal psychiatric instructions cover every stage of proceedings, pre-charge, fitness to plead, mental state at the time of the offence, sentence, hospital orders and appeals against conviction or sentence. The work demands Section 12(2) approval and, in many cases, current honorary or substantive contracts in secure psychiatric services.

The instructed expert needs to know not just the psychiatry but the procedural framework: the Pritchard criteria, the s.4/4A regime, the homicide partial defences, hospital and limitation directions, and the sentencing guidelines for mentally disordered offenders.

Legal framework

Reports are prepared in accordance with the Criminal Procedure Rules (CrimPR), the Criminal Practice Directions and, where applicable, the Mental Health Act 1983.

Psychiatric issues addressed

Fitness to plead under the Pritchard criteria
Mental state at the time of the offence
Diminished responsibility (Homicide Act 1957 s.2)
Insanity, automatism and infanticide
Risk and dangerousness for sentencing
Hospital orders, restriction orders and hybrid orders

Questions you can put to the expert

Drop any of these straight into your letter of instruction.

Is the defendant fit to plead and stand trial?
Was the defendant suffering from a recognised mental disorder at the time of the offence?
Is a hospital order or hospital and limitation direction appropriate?
What is the level of risk to the public?

Criminal law: areas we cover

Diminished responsibility and loss of control

Reports under s.2 Homicide Act 1957 address the four-stage test in Golds and the relationship between any recognised medical condition, substantial impairment and the defendant's conduct. We also report on the loss-of-control defence under the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 where it is in issue.

Fitness to plead

We provide reports applying the Pritchard criteria, addressing the five capacities and the risk of unfair trial. Where unfit, we comment on the statutory disposals available under s.5 of the 1964 Act and the suitability of a hospital order under s.37.

Hospital orders and hybrid orders

We comment on the suitability of disposals under ss.37, 41, 45A and 47 of the Mental Health Act 1983, identifying a proposed receiving unit, and addressing the level of security required. Liaison with the receiving forensic service is included.

Mental state at the time of the offence (MSO)

MSO reports address insanity, automatism, and where psychotic illness, organic brain disease or severe affective disorder may have negated mens rea or supported a partial defence. We are careful to distinguish what the expert can properly say (clinical opinion) from what is for the jury (legal verdict).

Newton hearings and appeals

We provide focused reports for Newton hearings and for appeals against conviction or sentence, including post-conviction reports addressing fresh psychiatric evidence under s.23 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1968.

Sentencing mitigation

Reports for sentencing address recognised mental disorder at the time of the offence and at sentence, the relevance of any disorder to culpability, harm, and dangerousness, and the realistic treatment options under or alongside any custodial sentence.

What's in the report

Part 35 / FPR Part 25 / CrimPR statement of compliance, as applicable
Expert's CV and statement of independence
Detailed list of materials considered (records, statements, scans, prior reports)
Full history, mental state examination and collateral information
Diagnostic formulation referenced to ICD-11 / DSM-5-TR
Reasoned opinion on causation, apportionment, prognosis and treatment
Indicative treatment costings where requested
Statement of truth signed in the prescribed form

How we help

Same-day shortlist of suitable consultants once we receive a brief instruction
Choice of male or female assessor, and of sub-specialty, on every instruction
Fixed fees agreed up front; Legal Aid prior authority figures supported
Standard turnaround 1–2 weeks; urgent reports inside 5 working days where the diary allows
Joint reports, addendum reports, Part 35 questions and CMC attendance handled by the same expert
Remote (secure video) or in-person assessment across the UK

Frequently asked questions

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