Director of Public Prosecutions (England and Wales)
Encyclopedia
The Director of Public Prosecutions of England and Wales (DPP) is a senior prosecutor, appointed by the Attorney General
. First created in 1879, the office was unified with that of the Treasury Solicitor
less than a decade later before again becoming independent in 1908. The Director's department and role underwent modernisation from 1944 to 1964 under Sir Theobald Mathew QC
, and further expansion with the introduction of the Crown Prosecution Service
(CPS) in 1985, which came under the control of the Director. The Director is answerable to and appointed by the Attorney-General for England and Wales, and oversees all public prosecutions, most of which are dealt with by the CPS.
to take on cases of particular importance, but this left many cases falling through the net. As a result, the Prosecution of Offenses Act 1879 was passed, which created a Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to advise the police and personally act in cases of importance; an elaboration on the 1856 Act.
The first appointee was Sir John Maule QC, who took up his post in 1880. Maule was a quiet, reserved and cautious man, who interpreted his powers in an unnecessarily restrictive way, feeling that he could do little more than send cases to the Treasury Solicitor's office, and that it was not the job of the DPP to prosecute cases. He came under harsh criticism, which reached a head in 1883 when he refused to authorise prosecution of a pair of blackmailers, who were instead prosecuted privately, convicted and given heavy sentences. As a result of the fallout, the then-Home Secretary
William Harcourt
set up a committee into "the present action and position of the Director of Public Prosecutions".
The Committee concluded that the DPP's job, in which he took no practical part in prosecutions, would be best unified into the job of the Treasury Solicitor, and that the DPP should be merged with the Treasury Solicitor. This was accepted, and the DPP "vanished in all but name". Successors for the rest of the century held both titles, and both jobs, thanks to the Prosecution of Offences Act 1884. The next few appointees were unimportant and uncontroversial, until Sir Charles Willie Matthews QC
, a man Rozenberg describes as "the first real DPP". The Prosecution of Offenses Act 1908 repealed the section of the 1884 Act that unified the DPP and Treasury Solicitor, giving Matthews an office of his own on his appointment in the same year.
The organisation remained rooted in its Victorian origins, still operating under the 1886 Prosecutions of Offences Regulations, until the appointment of Sir Theobald Mathew QC
in 1944. The youngest man (and only solicitor) to be appointed DPP at that time, Matthews modernised the office, updating the Prosecutions of Offences Regulations, introducing Trunk Dialling and using dictaphone
s to make up for the small number of shorthand typists. He reorganised and modernised the department as a whole, and many of his modifications are still in place; for example, a provision in most new Acts of Parliament dealing with the criminal law that requires the consent of the DPP for a prosecution. At the same time he battled with the Civil Service for an increase in staff numbers, securing the appointment of three new Assistant Solicitors in the late 1950s; a large leap for a staff which had previously numbered five, excluding secretaries. In 1985, the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 created the Crown Prosecution Service
(CPS), a dedicated, nation-wide prosecution service under the control of the DPP. This involved the recruitment of 3,000 new staff, which despite difficulties the DPP succeeded in doing. The CPS now handles the vast majority of prosecutions.
Attorney General for England and Wales
Her Majesty's Attorney General for England and Wales, usually known simply as the Attorney General, is one of the Law Officers of the Crown. Along with the subordinate Solicitor General for England and Wales, the Attorney General serves as the chief legal adviser of the Crown and its government in...
. First created in 1879, the office was unified with that of the Treasury Solicitor
Treasury Solicitor's Department
The Treasury Solicitor's Department is the largest in-house legal organisation in the United Kingdom's Government Legal Service.The Department is headed by the Treasury Solicitor. This office goes back several centuries...
less than a decade later before again becoming independent in 1908. The Director's department and role underwent modernisation from 1944 to 1964 under Sir Theobald Mathew QC
Theobald Mathew (lawyer)
Sir Theobald Mathew KCB MC QC was Director of Public Prosecutions from 1944 to 1964, making him the longest-serving DPP. In 1960 he was responsible for authorising the prosecution of Penguin Books for obscenity after they published Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence.-References:...
, and further expansion with the introduction of the Crown Prosecution Service
Crown Prosecution Service
The Crown Prosecution Service, or CPS, is a non-ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for public prosecutions of people charged with criminal offences in England and Wales. Its role is similar to that of the longer-established Crown Office in Scotland, and the...
(CPS) in 1985, which came under the control of the Director. The Director is answerable to and appointed by the Attorney-General for England and Wales, and oversees all public prosecutions, most of which are dealt with by the CPS.
History
A Director of public Prosecutions was first recommended by the Criminal Law Commission in 1845, who said that "the duty of prosecution is usually irksome, inconvenient and burthensome; the injured party would often rather forgo the prosecution than incur expense of time, labour and money. When, therefore, the party injured is compelled by the magistrate to act as prosecutor, the duty is frequently performed unwillingly and carelessly." An 1856 Act allowed the Home Office to ask the Treasury Solicitor's DepartmentTreasury Solicitor's Department
The Treasury Solicitor's Department is the largest in-house legal organisation in the United Kingdom's Government Legal Service.The Department is headed by the Treasury Solicitor. This office goes back several centuries...
to take on cases of particular importance, but this left many cases falling through the net. As a result, the Prosecution of Offenses Act 1879 was passed, which created a Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to advise the police and personally act in cases of importance; an elaboration on the 1856 Act.
The first appointee was Sir John Maule QC, who took up his post in 1880. Maule was a quiet, reserved and cautious man, who interpreted his powers in an unnecessarily restrictive way, feeling that he could do little more than send cases to the Treasury Solicitor's office, and that it was not the job of the DPP to prosecute cases. He came under harsh criticism, which reached a head in 1883 when he refused to authorise prosecution of a pair of blackmailers, who were instead prosecuted privately, convicted and given heavy sentences. As a result of the fallout, the then-Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
William Harcourt
William Vernon Harcourt (politician)
Sir William George Granville Venables Vernon Harcourt was a British lawyer, journalist and Liberal statesman. He served as Member of Parliament for various constituencies and held the offices of Home Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer under William Ewart Gladstone before becoming Leader of...
set up a committee into "the present action and position of the Director of Public Prosecutions".
The Committee concluded that the DPP's job, in which he took no practical part in prosecutions, would be best unified into the job of the Treasury Solicitor, and that the DPP should be merged with the Treasury Solicitor. This was accepted, and the DPP "vanished in all but name". Successors for the rest of the century held both titles, and both jobs, thanks to the Prosecution of Offences Act 1884. The next few appointees were unimportant and uncontroversial, until Sir Charles Willie Matthews QC
Sir Charles Willie Mathews, 1st Baronet
Sir Charles Willie Mathews, 1st Baronet, familiarly known as Willie Mathews was a British lawyer.He was born Charles Willie West in New York City, the son of actress Elizabeth Jackson and her first husband William West...
, a man Rozenberg describes as "the first real DPP". The Prosecution of Offenses Act 1908 repealed the section of the 1884 Act that unified the DPP and Treasury Solicitor, giving Matthews an office of his own on his appointment in the same year.
The organisation remained rooted in its Victorian origins, still operating under the 1886 Prosecutions of Offences Regulations, until the appointment of Sir Theobald Mathew QC
Theobald Mathew (lawyer)
Sir Theobald Mathew KCB MC QC was Director of Public Prosecutions from 1944 to 1964, making him the longest-serving DPP. In 1960 he was responsible for authorising the prosecution of Penguin Books for obscenity after they published Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence.-References:...
in 1944. The youngest man (and only solicitor) to be appointed DPP at that time, Matthews modernised the office, updating the Prosecutions of Offences Regulations, introducing Trunk Dialling and using dictaphone
Dictaphone
Dictaphone was an American company, a producer of dictation machines—sound recording devices most commonly used to record speech for later playback or to be typed into print. The name "Dictaphone" is a trademark, but in some places it has also become a common way to refer to all such devices, and...
s to make up for the small number of shorthand typists. He reorganised and modernised the department as a whole, and many of his modifications are still in place; for example, a provision in most new Acts of Parliament dealing with the criminal law that requires the consent of the DPP for a prosecution. At the same time he battled with the Civil Service for an increase in staff numbers, securing the appointment of three new Assistant Solicitors in the late 1950s; a large leap for a staff which had previously numbered five, excluding secretaries. In 1985, the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 created the Crown Prosecution Service
Crown Prosecution Service
The Crown Prosecution Service, or CPS, is a non-ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for public prosecutions of people charged with criminal offences in England and Wales. Its role is similar to that of the longer-established Crown Office in Scotland, and the...
(CPS), a dedicated, nation-wide prosecution service under the control of the DPP. This involved the recruitment of 3,000 new staff, which despite difficulties the DPP succeeded in doing. The CPS now handles the vast majority of prosecutions.
List of Directors
- Sir John Maule QC (1880-1884)
- Sir Augustus Stephenson QCAugustus Keppel StephensonSir Augustus Frederick William Keppel Stephenson KCB, QC was a Treasury Solicitor and the second person to hold the office of Director of Public Prosecutions in England and Wales.-Cases:...
(1884-1894; also treasury solicitor) - Lord Desart QCHamilton Cuffe, 5th Earl of DesartHamilton John Agmondesham Cuffe, 5th Earl of Desart, KP, KCB, PC was an Irish peer and solicitor.-Early life:...
(1894-1908; also treasury solicitor) - Sir Charles Willie Matthews QCSir Charles Willie Mathews, 1st BaronetSir Charles Willie Mathews, 1st Baronet, familiarly known as Willie Mathews was a British lawyer.He was born Charles Willie West in New York City, the son of actress Elizabeth Jackson and her first husband William West...
(1908-1920) - Sir Archibald Bodkin QCArchibald BodkinSir Archibald Henry Bodkin KCB was an English lawyer and the Director of Public Prosecutions from 1920 to 1930. He particularly took a stand against the publication of what he saw as 'obscene' literature.-Early years:...
(1920-1930) - Sir Edward Tindal Atkinson QCEdward Hale Tindal AtkinsonMajor Sir Edward Hale Tindal Atkinson, KCB, CBE was a British barrister and judge who served as the Director of Public Prosecutions from 1930 to 1944. After studying at Trinity College, Oxford Atkinson built up a substantial practice as a barrister before his volunteer work in the First World War...
(1930-1944) - Sir Theobald Mathew KCB MC QCTheobald Mathew (lawyer)Sir Theobald Mathew KCB MC QC was Director of Public Prosecutions from 1944 to 1964, making him the longest-serving DPP. In 1960 he was responsible for authorising the prosecution of Penguin Books for obscenity after they published Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence.-References:...
(1944-1964) - Sir Norman Skelhorn QCNorman SkelhornSir Norman Skelhorn KBE QC was the Director of Public Prosecutions for England and Wales from 1964 to 1977.. The son of a clergyman, he was educated at Shrewsbury School. He was called to the Bar in 1931...
(1964-1977) - Sir Thomas Hetherington QCThomas HetheringtonMajor Sir Thomas Chalmers Hetherington, KCB, CBE, QC, TD , better known as Sir Tony Hetherington, was a British barrister. He was Director of Public Prosecutions of England and Wales from 1977 to 1987, and was the first head of the Crown Prosecution Service for the year after it was founded in...
(1977-1987; first head of CPS) - Sir Allan Green QCAllan Green (barrister)Sir Allan David Green, KCB , QC is a barrister in England and Wales. He was Director of Public Prosecutions for England and Wales and second head of the Crown Prosecution Service from 1987 to 1992....
(1987-1992) - Dame Barbara Mills DBE QCBarbara MillsDame Barbara Jean Lyon Mills, DBE, QC was a British barrister. She held various senior public appointments including Director of Public Prosecutions, and was widely seen as a pioneer for women gaining such appointments in the higher echelons of the legal profession...
(1992-1998) - Sir David Calvert-Smith QCDavid Calvert-SmithSir David Calvert-Smith , styled The Hon. Mr Justice Calvert-Smith, was Director of Public Prosecutions of England and Wales from 1998 to 2003 and is now a High Court judge. Educated at Eton College and King's College Cambridge, he was called to the bar at the Middle Temple in 1969 and became a...
(1998-2003) - Sir Ken Macdonald QC (2003-2008)
- Keir StarmerKeir StarmerKeir Starmer, QC, is a barrister in England and Wales. He became the fourteenth Director of Public Prosecutions and the sixth head of the Crown Prosecution Service on 1 November 2008...
QC (2008-)