Archbold versus Blackstone

Archbold versus Blackstone: The Practitioner's Dilemma

ARCHBOLD
CRIMINAL PLEADING, EVIDENCE AND PRACTICE
ISBN: 0421692502 Sweet and Maxwell Ltd.
Price: £205 (with CD-ROM £265 +VAT)

BLACKSTONE'S
CRIMINAL PRACTICE
ISBN: 1 84174 100 0 Blackstone Press Ltd.
Price: £110 (with CD-ROM £174.63 (inc. VAT)

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Reviews by Phillip Taylor, a practising common law barrister.

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'Beware of imitations!' thunders the promotional literature from Archbold 2000. The new Archbold is, its publishers insist, 'the genuine article.' And so it is. But Blackstone's Criminal Practice is no less genuine.

True -- solid, erudite Archbold, having been with us since 1822, is the Ancient of Days, compared with Blackstone's which, since it was first published in 1991, has successfully challenged Archbold's glad, confident supremacy.

Like Archbold, Blackstone's has now blossomed forth in a new edition for the year 2000, having established itself in a decade as Archbold's mature and worthy rival.

Archbold and Blackstone's have both become indispensable for advocates at the criminal bar. Practitioners tend to be fiercely loyal, either to one of these works or the other and as it is my task to rush in where angels fear to tread and review both works at once, I shall no doubt be reminded about the odiousness of comparisons.

When I read for the Bar, the very idea that that there would ever be an alternative to Archbold would probably have been dismissed as fantasy. Definitive, authoritative, inimitable and unassailable Archbold had evolved, in the course of 66 years and 43 editions -- from a slim, one-volume work of legal reference into a weighty two volumes, reflecting and encompassing the proliferation of criminal legislation that had been passed over almost two centuries.

For anyone to attempt to compile a work which would equal Archbold was unthinkable -- unthinkable that is, until Blackstone's 1991 debut. Even then, I could not have predicted that, in less than a decade, I would be reviewing this young upstart publication as the equal of its portly elder.

If only for sheer practical reasons, Blackstone's relative brevity made it an instant hit. To us as barristers, it successfully fulfilled in one volume, a remit that Archbold apparently could only accomplish in two. Here at last, was a heavyweight, authoritative tome for the criminal practitioner in a lightweight format, somewhat more convenient to carry around than Archbold. If you were a barrister literally shouldering the burden of a voluminous brief, you could carry Blackstone's to court without needing a wheelbarrow, or retinue of pupils to assist you.

Blackstone's compactness however, also raised some suspicions. Blackstone's was 'only' a one volume work, wasn't it? Could it, or would it ever compare with the mighty Archbold? Or was it merely a downsized version?

As though anticipating such doubts, Blackstone's editor-in-chief, Peter Murphy, sought to address them in his graceful preface to the first edition. Reading it, one is reminded that Blackstone's Criminal Practice was 'designed to fill in the later years of the 20th century, the need that J.F.'s Archbold's prototype was designed to fill in the earlier years of the 19th' for 'a single volume of manageable size and expense' which would offer 'writing of uncompromising and rigorous scholarly quality'....'meticulous attention to detail'...'emphasis on the practice of the courts'...and 'critical scrutiny of content to promote maximum utility and minimum confusion.'

The assertion is also made that Blackstone's is 'simple and apt to the work of both branches of the legal profession', dealing 'as comprehensively and as practicable with all the law, evidence and procedure that practitioners need to know.'

Then, as now, Murphy makes no apologies for Blackstone's compactness and happily admits to excluding the irrelevant, the quaint and the antiquated, citing as examples: 1.) keeping a puma and two male leopards on the highway and 2.) assaulting a clergyman of the established church while in the middle of divine worship!

So what 's the answer? Should you buy Blackstone's or Archbold? My advice is, if you can afford it, ignore the expense and buy both. You might regret it if you don't, if only because certain omissions in one are probably included in the other for whatever reason, especially abuse of process. Nevertheless, both offer equal comprehensiveness and erudition, with the former having the slight edge over the latter for approachability and user-friendliness.

Each work lays claim to being the 'the most cited publication in the Crown Court.' and whether this statement holds true in practice depends to some extent on where you are. My own experience has been confirmed by a number of my colleagues that, if you are a practitioner in the South East, you'll see more of Archbold. On the Western Circuit, however, you are more likely to find that Blackstone's is the most oft quoted work. But don't quote me.

Whatever one's personal preferences, it is safe to say that the rivalry between Blackstone's and Archbold has benefited both of them. Spurred on by Blackstone's nipping at its heels, Archbold has become leaner, fitter, more vigorous and relevant in the last eight years. With its original two-volume bulk pared down to one, Archbold is now published annually, instead of every three years and, like Blackstone's, it is also available on CD ROM. Archbold does publish an updating newsletter issued 10 times a year, plus three cumulative supplements which bring main work completely up to date with new legislation and case law.

Not to be outdone, Blackstone's has plunged into the mainstream of multimedia with a vengeance, making itself available in four formats. Besides book and CD ROM, there is a 'Criminal Practice' for the Psion 5 and and 7 series palmtops, which means you can carry Blackstone's in your pocket, implement automated searches and insert your own notes. Whether you are a technophobe or not, you must admit this takes compactness and portability to impressive lengths. Or, you can subscribe annually to Crime Online which provides the full text of Blackstone's, together with daily updates of cases and legislation.

Archbold and Blackstone's, in my view, go their separate ways to arrive at much the same destination. As Dr. Johnson didn't say to Boswell, but might have: 'Sir, it is difficult to settle the proportion of efficacy between them!' Can it be said that both volumes complement rather than compete with one another? I believe it can and as practitioners, we should consider ourselves very lucky to have them.

Contact: Phillip Taylor 0208 948 4801