Who we are

Our Mission:

APPEAL is a charity and law practice dedicated to challenging wrongful convictions and promoting a fair justice system.

Our Aims & Objectives:

We holistically support individuals and their families who have experienced a miscarriage of justice and who cannot afford to pay for an appeal lawyer.

We bring unsafe convictions and unfair sentences to the Court of Appeal and the Criminal Cases Review Commission.

We campaign on the wider issues our cases touch upon, informing the media, parliament, criminal justice policy makers and the public, in order to achieve reform of the criminal justice system.

We deploy our expert knowledge to identify particular issues of concern, conduct research and publish our findings.

Our Vision:

A justice system in which people in England and Wales are at less risk of wrongful conviction ot unfair sentencing and all such wrongs are righted as a matter of urgency.

Our History:

APPEAL was founded by Emily Bolton. From her previousy work in the US, Emily brough to British criminal appeals practice a focus on boots-on-the-ground case investigation and on the importance of bringing certain cases both in the courts of law and in the courts of public opinion. She built the organisation from a staff of two to thirteen over it’s first decade. Under Emily’s leadership, APPEAL secured the exoneration of Andrew Malkinson in 2023. This case is now being used by APPEAL as a spearhead for reform of the criminal appeals system in England and Wales.