Not a stain on your character?”: the finality of acquittals and the search for just outcomes

Little attention has been given to the harms, both formal and informal, inflicted on acquitted defendants. This article documents the nature of those harms and questions the legitimacy of state-sanctioned restrictions on the lives of acquitted defendants through the activities of the Disclosure and Barring Service and the use of enhanced criminal record certificates. Whilst recognising the heterogeneous nature of the acquitted population and being cautious about risks posed to vulnerable others arising out of the gap between criminal and civil standards of proof, the article argues in favour of greater justice for acquitted defendants. It also proposes both a more generous approach to compensation for the acquitted and a bifurcated use of necessary restrictions for some on their subsequent liberties.