ABSTRACT
As well as giving your advice it may also be your responsibility to negotiate with the police on your client’s behalf for him or her to be cautioned. This is especially appropriate for juvenile clients. The police will administer a caution to a juvenile where he or she admits the offence and, as required by the National Standards for Cautioning (HO Circular 18/1994), the juvenile’s parents or guardian are also required to give their consent. In theory it may be possible for a caution to be administered where the juvenile does not consent but his or her parents do consent, but in practice this is most unlikely to happen as a major reason for administering a caution is to encourage the offender to recognise their wrongdoing and undertake not to commit further offences.
