‘An enormously valuable – and long overdue – book.’

Rt Hon Lord Smith of Finsbury, Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, from his foreword

Every year, thousands of people in England and Wales walk into a courtroom without a lawyer. Nobody tells them what they are walking into. This book does.

Drawing on the case files of Blind Justice UK, Alone in Court follows ordinary people through the decision to fight, the paper war, the tactics of the other side, the day in court, the cost, the obsession, the loneliness, and what winning – and walking away – really feel like.

An electrician owed twelve thousand pounds for work already done. A teaching assistant whose defence never reached the judge. A hairdresser who opened a twelve-page letter from a City firm and felt her hands go cold. A woman who won her tribunal claim on every point and recovered a fraction of the award.

Their names have been changed. What happened to them has not.

Every chapter ends with what it means for you: what to do, what to avoid, and when to stop. The book closes with a costed proposal for a litigant in person liaison officer in every court, and three appendices covering the legislation, the court forms and the free help that exists.

This is not a textbook. It is a field guide, written by someone who has stood in court alone himself, for anyone about to do the same.

In his foreword, Lord Smith describes Alone in Court as ‘a clarion call for greater access to justice for ordinary citizens.’

Edward Romain ACILEX is the Founder and CEO of Blind Justice UK, a registered charity supporting litigants in person. His research has been published as written evidence by the Justice Select Committee.