Our Project works to free the innocent, prevent wrongful convictions, and create fair, compassionate, and equitable systems of justice for everyone.
To achieve these objectives, we work to:
Investigate – investigate cases with the hope of exonerating the innocent who are protesting their factual innocence of the crimes for which they have been convicted. Law student case workers supervised by lawyers investigate cases in the hope of finding new or newly discovered evidence which can be used by a separate legal team to bring a miscarriage of justice application before the Court of Appeal. We potentially work with all cases where a person has been convicted on indictment, i.e., in a court other than the district court, where they have exhausted their right of appeal, where they are not currently legally represented, and where they are protesting their factual innocence. Our work is guided by human rights and equality principles in relation to our own work and our work with others.
Reform – advocate for reform of the criminal justice system to prevent wrongful convictions, and to ensure effective and accessible remedies for those who have been the victim of a wrongful conviction.
Educate – educate law students through clinical legal education to assist in their development as lawyers, and in so doing to provide them with knowledge, skills and competencies which allow them to make a positive contribution to society and those they will serve. We also aim to inculcate in students an appreciation of the causes of wrongful convictions, the steps and reform necessary to prevent and redress wrongful convictions, and the importance of science, rationality, and a human rights perspective in relation to their work.
Collaborate – collaborate with our colleagues in the International and European Innocence Networks of which we are members, and with other like-minded organisations in Ireland and around the world to combat wrongful convictions and support exonerees.