Her Honour Wendy Joseph, KC

Her Honour Wendy Joseph KC, Old Bailey judge and author of Unlawful Killings, returns with Rough Justice: Do we have the Law we Deserve?

Rough Justice skilfully reconstructs courtroom dramas affecting society's most vulnerable. Joseph draws on her many years' experience as a murder trial judge, and asks the key questions of the institutions tasked to deliver what is right and fair.

From the trial of a child charged with disposing of dismembered body parts, to the woman accused of killing her own husband, Joseph is utterly compelling as she sets out how our justice system works. But, as she compares these modern courtroom tales with eerily similar cases and miscarriages of justice from years ago, might the most chilling story of all be that the lessons of the past have yet to be learned?

Incisive, masterfully crafted, Rough Justice illuminates the struggles of any one of us caught up in our legal system - but particularly the marginalized and the easily exploited - and grapples with the concept of 'justice for all' so that we might demand better. Rough Justice forces us to consider: What is justice? Do our legal courts dispense it? Has our judicial process improved, for the victims, the accused and for society? And what more must be done to ensure genuine justice is carried out in future?

Until March 2022 Her Honour Wendy Joseph KC was a judge at the Old Bailey, sitting on criminal cases, trying mainly allegations of murder and other homicide. She read English and Law at Cambridge, was called to the Bar by Gray's Inn in 1975, became a QC in 1998 and sat as a full-time judge from 2007 to 2022. When she moved to the Old Bailey in 2012 she was the only woman amongst sixteen judges, and only the third woman ever to hold a permanent position there. She was also a Diversity and Community Relations Judge, working to promote understanding between the judiciary and many different sectors of our community, particularly those from less privileged and minority groups. She mentors young people, from a variety of backgrounds, who hope for a career in law and has a special interest in helping women. Her first book, Unlawful Killings, won the Crime Writer's Association 'Gold Dagger' for Non-fiction and was a Sunday Times bestseller.