There is a narrow window between being investigated and being charged. Used well, it is where allegations are answered, evidence is tested, and charges are stopped. We make that window count.
Being investigated is one of the most unsettling experiences there is — made worse by uncertainty about what happens next. But this stage is not dead time.
It is the period in which the right action can shape, narrow, or end a case before a single charge is brought. Pre-charge engagement is how we use that time on your behalf: putting your side forward to investigators and the Crown Prosecution Service while the decision to charge is still open.
Pre-charge engagement is the structured dialogue between you (through your solicitor) and the investigators, after the first interview under caution but before any charge is made. It is a chance to address lines of enquiry, share material that helps your case, identify witnesses, and correct course before matters harden into a prosecution.
It can be formal or informal, conducted in writing or in person — but every exchange is recorded and used deliberately, as part of a wider strategy.
Before anyone can be charged, prosecutors must be satisfied there is enough evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction, and that a prosecution is in the public interest. Both can be addressed now.
We identify flaws, gaps and unlawful steps in the investigation — illegal arrest or search, errors by investigators — before they become the foundation of a charge.
Carefully drafted written representations set out, to the CPS, why the evidential or public-interest test is not met — and why no charge should follow.
Where devices, documents or assets have been seized, we press for their prompt return and challenge anything held without proper basis.
We take a full, private account of your situation and obtain the available detail of what is being investigated and why.
We gather supporting evidence, instruct experts where needed, and identify the material and witnesses that contradict the allegation.
If a voluntary interview is appropriate, we plan it with you in full — what is asked, what is said, and when silence is the stronger answer.
We engage the police and CPS directly, in writing where it counts, arguing the case should not proceed — or only on a lesser footing.
It is the stage of a criminal matter before any formal charge is brought — while you are a suspect under investigation but no decision to prosecute has been made. It often follows an arrest or a voluntary interview under caution.
Yes. A voluntary interview is still a formal interview under caution. What you say — or fail to say — can be used as evidence and may damage a defence raised later. Having a solicitor present protects your position and ensures the questioning is fair.
There are no guarantees, but a solicitor can present evidence, expose weaknesses in the investigation, and make representations that genuinely influence whether the CPS decides to charge. Many cases conclude with no further action precisely because of well-judged pre-charge work.
Rarely. Waiting hands the initiative to the investigators and lets evidence go untested. Early engagement lets you shape the picture before a charging decision is made — when it can still make the most difference.
Crisis management prepares a defence before any investigation has formally begun. Pre-charge engagement applies once you are a suspect and the investigation is underway, but before a charge is brought. The two often flow into one another, and we move seamlessly between them.
No. Wade Lloyd is a private firm. Clients instruct us privately, which lets us devote full time and resource to a smaller number of cases.
If you are under investigation, do not wait for the charge to find you. Speak to us in confidence and we will tell you, honestly, how we can help — and what the next step should be.
Proactive preparation before any investigation begins — so you are ready the moment contact comes.
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