SQE1 Criminal Practice – Rules, Exceptions & Key Distinctions Cheat Sheet

A comprehensive 35-page SQE1 Criminal Practice revision guide designed to help you understand, organise and quickly recall the procedural rules most likely to be tested in multiple-choice questions.

The resource is structured to follow the relevant SRA SQE1 Assessment Specification and Functioning Legal Knowledge (FLK) applicable.

The cheat sheet presents criminal procedure in structured, colour-coded tables separating the general rule, exceptions, important limits, MCQ trigger words, legal effects and relevant deadlines.

Topics covered include:

• Police powers and detention
• Custody records and detention reviews
• Legal advice at the police station
• Interviews and the right to silence
• Identification procedures
• Charging
• Vulnerable suspects
• Offence classification
• Criminal legal aid
• Bail
• Plea before venue and allocation
• Magistrates' Court and Crown Court procedure
• Trial procedure
• Confessions
• Character evidence
• Hearsay and other evidential issues
• Sentencing
• Guilty plea credit
• Youth court procedure and sentencing
• Criminal appeals

The guide places particular emphasis on procedural sequence, decision-makers, statutory tests, deadlines and the consequences of choosing one procedural route over another.

The resource is designed for use when consolidating Criminal Practice, preparing for mocks or completing final-stage revision before the SQE1 examination.

Please note: This is an independently prepared revision resource and is not affiliated with, approved by or endorsed by the SRA, Kaplan, any university, education provider or SQE training provider. It is intended as a supplementary study aid and should be used alongside the official SQE assessment specification and your main study materials.