True Stories of Life and Law

In Your Defence

Riveting and insightful account of life at the bar and eleven cases that demonstrate the strengths, weakness and realities of our legal system. 'As thrilling as a detective novel.' -The Times

Sarah Langford has reinvented a genre ... [as a barrister she has turned] her experience of 11 criminal cases into short stories that are as compelling as fiction, with the added fascination of being essentially true ... Immensely powerful.

A compelling read for anyone who cares about fairness, justice and humanity and should be on the reading list of all politicians and policy-makers.

[Langford] combines the demands of her job, the stories of those she represents and her own views and emotions with great skill...powerful, moving and often captivating.

Vivid... surprisingly uplifting. A thoughtful, elegant book. ... it is often as thrilling as a detective novel.  And sometimes it is moving: the last chapter had this reviewer in tears.

Thomas Grant, QC - author of Jeremy Hutchinson's Case Histories

A riveting account of cases she's fought over nearly 10 years in the family courts. These are harrowing stories: of newborns taken by social services, of bitter divorces, of children trapped in the turbulence of addiction, gangs, or both, an unprecedented collection, moving, enraging and desperate, all told in Langford's cool, compelling prose.

This compelling book tracks eleven cases through the criminal and family courts...tales of despair and hope that could be about you or me. Sarah Langford's stated objective is to bring 'to life ideas which otherwise so often appear in abstract: fairness, justice, truth'. The result is a resounding and thought-provoking success....Insightful and often haunting ... Langford starts her journey as a single woman; she ends it married and soon to be a mother. Between times she has been changed. And, over the course of her book, so are we... There are unforgettable descriptions ... As much as these are engrossing stories, written with flair, and in clean, tight prose, Langford has serious points to make...

By turns heartbreaking and hopeful, and succeeds in giving an articulate, compassionate voice to those who would otherwise struggle to be heard. 
The prose is engrossing, and the book is only too easy to devour in great gulps ... Langford tackles the frustration and fears of the profession with honesty and energy.

This page-turner gets to the heart of whether or not the legal system delivers justice, impartiality and fair judgment.

In Your Defence is an anthology of beautifully rendered stories of legal practice, each striking at the beating heart of our justice system. The storytelling is compelling, reading like page-turning fiction, but speaking in every chapter to fundamental truths about the meaning of justice for those trapped in the wheels of our criminal and family courts. Sarah Langford breathes vibrancy and compassion into the dusty tomes of the law, capturing and exposing the raw humanity lying beneath the system, and offering a necessary reminder of the impact of the law on those whose lives are chartered by its whims.

Editor's Choice: Brilliant, highly illuminating…it’s hard to imagine a better written or more insightful account of life at the bar than this.

The heart to the brains of @Secret Barrister's book. Together the soul of the Bar.

A wonderful book from a vivid new talent. Revealing, moving, funny, sad, uplifting and beautifully written, with the observational skills of Alan Bennett and the heart of Charles Dickens. Every chapter is an elegantly constructed short story complete with plot twists that alternately deliver a knife to the guts or a glimmer of hope that makes you think humanity has a chance.

Tim Shipman - political editor of the Sunday Times and author of Fall Out

I loved this book. It made my heart sing. Written by a woman in the law with compassion, wit and legal know-how, these true life courtroom stories tell it like it is. All life is there, showing the importance to justice of lawyers who understand the human condition, Brava, Sarah Langford.

The wig comes off. More than just a cracking collection of courtroom short-stories -Langford bares her soul.

A great insight into the human side of law.

Thought-provoking, moving and wise. In Your Defence reminds us that whatever side of the dock we're on, we are bound together by more than what sets us apart.

With masterly insight into the pressures and strains experienced by the family and criminal courts, as well an account of their humanity, Sarah Langford describes with modesty and elegance why she is proud to be a barrister. She should also be very proud of this book.

Helen Ward, Lady Ward – Partner of Stewarts LLP

Riveting, powerful and deeply moving, an insider's account of a little-known world that is well observed, beautifully written and full of heart.

Henry Hemming - author of M:Maxwell Knight, MI5's Greatest Spymaster

I loved it.  Sarah’s focus on her own thoughts and observations made it a refreshing take on life at the Bar and made it distinct from other case memoirs I have read.  It was all the better for it.

Robert Buckland QC MP - Solicitor General for England and Wales

Sarah Langford shines a light on the hidden world of the criminal and family courts, on the many layers of grey in those who appear, be they defendant, victim, teenage mother or divorcee. She shows how difficult it is to navigate truth and justice, and how the blameless often get the blame. Essential reading for an insiders' insight behind the wigs and gowns.

Penelope Gibbs - Director, Transform Justice

A thorough, gentle, beautiful interrogation of what the justice system is and should be. Compelling and profound.

Full of vividly drawn characters and subtle twists, this hugely enjoyable and empathetic tour of life as a barrister left me both astonished and moved.

Hermione Eyre - journalist and author of Viper Wine

A book about the law that is really about human nature, written with a novelist’s psychological depth and gift for language. Superficially, we are taken inside an alien professional world - into a barrister’s life. In fact, we are being walked around the world we live in.

Ed Smith - author of Luck:a fresh look at fortune

Compelling, humane and insightful. This book is that rare combination of both gripping and wise, and has something to teach us, not only about the law, but about our relationship with the truth and the meaning of the word justice.

An incredible and beautifully written anthology of the highs and lows of life at the Bar. Moving. Read it!

Imran Mahmood - author of You Don't Know Me

Unveiling what are all too often mysterious and impenetrable layers of the law, Sarah Langford bares her soul to her readers, enabling us to share with her the harsh realities of defending people who have often been knocked down in the marathon race to survive their troubled lives.  She's a terrific writer.

Lindy Woodhead - author of Shopping, Seduction & Mr Selfridge

A vivid picture of the courts at work... surprisingly uplifting. A thoughtful, elegant book. Langford weaves the chaos of lives at moments of crisis into a neat and satisfying whole... Each chapter unfolds a set of messy facts where the outcome is unclear, the justice of the case opaque. Is Langford's client guilty? Should he go to prison? Will, or should, the mother keep her children out of the reach of the father?  The resolution is often as thrilling as a detective novel.  And sometimes it is moving: the last chapter had this reviewer in tears.  In its quiet way Langford's book is also a portrait of a particular version of Britain...I hope the lord chancellor reads it, and learns from it.

Thomas Grant, QC, author of Jeremy Hutchinson's Case Histories

Sarah Langford's brilliant account of our justice system's inner workings is a compelling, moving and powerful work. Its a gripping series of stories. But also a quietly powerful manifesto for change. Every citizen concerned about fairness in our society, and particularly the fate of the most vulnerable, should read it. And politicians must take to heart the lessons this dedicated lawyer teaches us.

A MUST READ: ‘A barrister’s stories of her cases that read like the best fiction.’

Sarah Langford's book of 11 criminal cases gives us an everyday feel of what goes on in court... Salutary and moving too.

This is an absolutely fascinating insider account of life at the bar by defence barrister Sarah Langford, told, with a novelist’s eye, through the stories of 11 ordinary people she’s defended. As Langford journeys through and challenges her own unconscious bias, she’ll make you take a long hard – and not entirely comfortable – look at your own.

I greatly enjoyed Sarah Langford’s In Your Defence (Doubleday), an insider’s account of life as a barrister. Justice and the law provide the lens: the subject is really human nature.

The law is endlessly fascinating, in is history, rituals, manners, language and, above all, in the people whose lives revolve, temporarily or in the long term, around its practise. In Your Defence: Stories of Life and Law by the barrister Sarah Langford tells the stories of some of those caught up in its complex workings. It is riveting … and quite alarming.

Eye-opening…an illuminating warts-and-all portrait of the law in action…Langford cares passionately about her clients and shows us the rarely reported human face of the law

'As thrilling as a detective novel.' The Times 
'Powerful, moving and often captivating.' Financial Times 
'A compelling read for anyone who cares about fairness, justice and humanity.' Observer 
 
The Sunday Times bestseller 
 
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Sarah Langford is a barrister. Her job is to stand in court representing the mad and the bad, the vulnerable, the heartbroken and the hopeful. She must become their voice. Sarah weaves their story around the black and white of the law and tell it to the courtroom. These stories may not make headlines but they will change the lives of ordinary people in extraordinary ways. They are stories which, but for a twist of luck, might have been yours. 
 
With remarkable candour, Sarah describes eleven cases which reveal what goes on in our criminal and family courts: these are tales of domestic fall out, everyday burglary, sexual indiscretion, and children caught up in the law. They are sometimes shocking and they are often heart-stopping. She examines how she feels as she defends the person standing in the dock. She also shows us how our attitudes and actions can shape not only the outcome of a case, but the legal system itself. 
 
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What readers are saying: 
 
***** 'Absolutely fascinating . . . thought provoking, powerful and a compelling read.' 
***** 'This book broke my heart at times but also contained humour and such poignant insights into the criminal justice system.' 
***** 'Sarah writes incredibly well - she's informative while maintaining suspense and tension, and conveys so much emotion in her writing

Sarah Langford

Enthralling ... An unignorable call to understand the challenges facing not only farming but the Earth itself.

Absorbing, compassionate [and] galvanising.

Langford writes so movingly of the countryside and its effect on her heart and her family.

More than a memoir; Langford manages to contain and convey the whole scale of the coming agricultural revolution.

A refreshing perspective on a overwhelmingly masculine world

Sarah Langford's book on farming is really a book about healing. All of life and death is here: family, politics, nature, climate, history, humanity. Rooted is a beautifully written, powerful reminder of where we've gone wrong, what is at stake, and how we can change. I loved it.

Christie Watson, bestselling author of The Language of Kindness

Rooted offers us an honest look at the farming life today. It is not an easy way to make a living, but through Langford's personal story - and those of who she meets - we appreciate how it offers a connection with the land, and a firmer sense of our place in the world. Raw, earthy and inspiring.

Cal Flyn, author of Islands of Abandonment

Moving, startling, uplifting, galvanising and unsettling, this plainly beautiful book is one of those rare few that changes how you see the world around you: the shape of fields seen from a train, the vegetables in a supermarket chiller cabinet, the earth beneath your feet and falling through your fingers.

Ella Risbridger, author of Midnight Chicken and The Year of Miracles

A beautifully written, incredibly timely book addressing not just where our food comes from and why this matters so much, but also fundamental questions relating to our relationship with the land, and the definition of home.

Clover Stroud, author of My Wild and Sleepless Nights

Heartbreaking and hopeful, this story of a farming revival has never been more important. It opened my eyes and touched my soul

A magical book of wonderful stories about how farmers think and the challenges they face. It demonstrates that farmers across the country are passionate about producing food and caring for the land. A triumph

Rooted is a brave thing: a book that prods into the ever-widening gulf between the binaries we increasingly use to examine the world. As conversations about what we eat and where it comes from reach fever-pitch, Sarah Langford's clear-eyed, inquisitive and passionate plea for farmers and farming offers a vital understanding when it has never been so needed. I hope everyone reads it.

An eloquent and personal insight into the terrible human as well as environmental cost of cheap food and an inspiring account of the people working to heal our relationship with our habitat and ourselves. Urgent, necessary and moving.

A fine book: heartfelt, honest and hopeful. Sarah has the knowledge and skill to help people better understand where their food comes from and why we should all care.

Moving, intimate, tender and searing, this is a gem of a book with deep roots and fresh green shoots.

A timely and optimistic book, ostensibly about why we need farming to produce food, but more deeply about how farming is done, or could be done. Refreshingly authentic, Rooted gives us a hopeful sense of a regenerative future

Juliet Blaxland, author of The Easternmost House and The Easternmost Sky

Evocative and resonant. These are stories that need to be told.

Poetically written and filled with compelling data about modern-day farming

Where Rooted ploughs its own shining furrow in its humanity ... but also the gathered, inspirational stories of farmers trying to do better and greener.

Sarah Langford

Praise for Rooted

Enthralling ... An unignorable call to understand the challenges facing not only farming but the Earth itself.

Absorbing, compassionate [and] galvanising.

Langford writes so movingly of the countryside and its effect on her heart and her family.

Enthralling ... An unignorable call to understand the challenges facing not only farming but the Earth itself.

Absorbing, compassionate [and] galvanising.

Langford writes so movingly of the countryside and its effect on her heart and her family.

Enthralling ... An unignorable call to understand the challenges facing not only farming but the Earth itself.

Absorbing, compassionate [and] galvanising.

Langford writes so movingly of the countryside and its effect on her heart and her family.

Books by Sarah Langford

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