Allegations of assault arise from a wide range of circumstances, from disputes in public places to incidents between neighbours, colleagues, or partners, and the charge which results can range from a minor offence dealt with by magistrates to one carrying a maximum of life imprisonment.
The role of an assault solicitor is to identify at the earliest stage which offence the evidence supports, whether any defence is available, and how the case should be presented, because the difference between one charge and another can be the difference between a fine and a lengthy prison sentence.
Johnson Astills represents clients accused of assault across Leicester, Loughborough, and the surrounding areas, from the police station through to the Crown Court.
Please call us free now on 0800 059 0600 or complete a Free Online Enquiry and a member of the team will get back to you soon.
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What Are The Different Offences Of Assault?
The charge brought in an assault case depends largely on the injury caused and on what the person is said to have intended. The main offences include:
- Common assault and battery. These are the least serious offences and by some distance the most frequently charged. Common assault covers any act which causes another person to fear immediate violence, while battery is the use of unlawful force against another person. No injury is required for either. Both are dealt with in the Magistrates’ Court, carry a maximum of six months’ imprisonment, and must generally be prosecuted within six months of the incident.
- Assault on an emergency worker, such as a police officer, paramedic or nurse carrying out their duties. These offences can be sent to the Crown Court and carry a maximum of two years’ imprisonment The Crime and Policing Act 2026 has created a similar separate offence of assaulting a retail worker.
- Assault occasioning actual bodily harm, commonly known as ABH. This offence requires proof of an injury which is more than trivial and carries a maximum sentence of five years’ imprisonment.
- Unlawful wounding or inflicting grievous bodily harm, known as a section 20 offence. This offence covers injuries which break the skin or which amount to really serious harm, and it carries a maximum of five years’ imprisonment.
- Wounding or causing grievous bodily harm with intent, known as a section 18 offence. This offence is tried only in the Crown Court and carries a maximum of life imprisonment.
How Are Assault Offences Sentenced?
The sentencing guidelines for assault require the court to look first at the defendant’s culpability and the harm caused before arriving at a starting point and adjusting it for any aggravating or mitigating features.
Factors which can increase the severity of the sentence include:
- The use of a weapon
- A leading role in group violence
- A significant degree of planning
- The targeting of a vulnerable victim
- An offence committed in a domestic setting
Previous good character, remorse, and an early guilty plea all count in the defendant’s favour.
How Can You Defend An Assault Charge?
A person is entitled to use reasonable force to defend themselves or another person, or to prevent a crime, and the law looks at this in two stages:
- Whether the defendant believed that force was necessary, and a belief which was mistaken but truly held is sufficient; and
- Whether the amount of force used was reasonable in the circumstances as the defendant believed them to be, bearing in mind that a person facing an attack cannot be expected to judge the precise degree of force needed
Where force is used against an intruder in the home, the law goes further and recognises that force which is disproportionate may still be reasonable, provided it is not grossly disproportionate. Once self-defence is raised, it is for the prosecution to disprove it.
How Can Johnson Astills Help?
Our assault solicitors represent clients at every stage of an assault case, and our team includes accredited police station representatives, duty solicitors, and higher court advocates. This means that we can handle your case from the first interview to trial without instructing outside counsel. The team is led by Michelle Harding, a Higher Court Advocate with more than twenty years’ experience, and the firm holds the Law Society’s Criminal Litigation Accreditation and the Lexcel practice management standard. We undertake legal aid work where the client qualifies and offer fixed fees and payment by instalments for privately funded cases.
Everyone has the right to free and independent legal advice at the police station, and the decision whether to answer questions, provide a prepared statement, or make no comment should be taken only with the benefit of that advice. We provide a 24-hour service for police station interviews and out-of-hours court hearings.
Please call us free now on 0800 059 0600 or complete a Free Online Enquiry and a member of the team will get back to you soon.
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