Yesterday I went to the Magistrates' Court with one of the barristers to see a "real trial". However, it did not really get going as the Magistrates were already very clear on what to make of the evidence given so far. In the end, the prosecutor did not even have to present her witnesses. Nevertheless, the case took several hours as there were many breaks, e.g. when the defendant had to go to the probation office.

Despite that I found it very interesting, as I have not been to court very often (not even in Germany), and in a foreign country it is definitely even more exiting. Furthermore, we do not have Magistrates' Courts in Germany, so the "system" with three Magistrates and a Legal Advisor was completely new to me. I was also surprised how much I understood of what was going on, but of course understanding what other people are saying in English is much easier than actually speaking it ... J