Attorney General’s guidelines on disclosure 2013
Revised guidance on how to apply the disclosure regime contained in the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996 (CPIA)
Applies to England, Northern Ireland and Wales
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These guidelines are issued by the Attorney General for investigators, prosecutors and defence practitioners on the application of the disclosure regime contained in the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996 (CPIA). The guidelines emphasise the importance of prosecution-led disclosure and the importance of applying the CPIA regime in a ‘thinking manner’, tailored, where appropriate, to the type of investigation or prosecution in question.
The guidelines do not contain the detail of the disclosure regime; they outline the high level principles which should be followed when the disclosure regime is applied.
They replace the existing ‘Attorney General’s guidelines on disclosure’ issued in 2005 and the supplementary guidelines on digital material issued in 2011, which is an annex to the general guidelines.
The guidelines are intended to operate alongside the Judicial protocol on the disclosure of unused material in criminal cases
Review of the efficiency and effectiveness of disclosure in the criminal justice system
On 11 December 2017 it was announced that the Attorney General would lead a review of disclosure procedures to explore how to make prosecutorial processes more effective and efficient.
The results of the review have now been published.
The Attorney General’s guidelines will be reviewed in light of its findings and any updates will be published on this page.
Last updated 17 December 2018 + show all updates
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Updated page with link to the results of the Attorney General's Disclosure Review.
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Update included on the Attorney General's Review of Disclosure which began in December 2017.
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First published.