With the Law on Our Side

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Brought to you by Penguin.

Our laws and justice system are vast and ancient: they might touch our lives when we have an accident, a wrong is done to us, or we have a family difficulty. And they cover everything from the personal to the regulation of our government. But to most of us they are a web of intimidating institutions and practices.

Lady Hale – former President of the Supreme Court and an inspirational figure admired for her historic achievements and for the causes she has championed – shows us how the law is on our side. Taking us into the complexities of real courts and real decisions, we see that we all have rights: schoolchildren, the disabled, workers, minorities and patients.

Here are true stories from every part of the justice system, from lowly benefits tribunals and magistrates’ courts to the lofty heights of the Royal Courts of Justice and the Old Bailey; stories about the dilemmas of deciding what is right and just, which invite you to say where justice lies before knowing what the courts decided. From mundane situations to the dramatic and the extraordinary, we see how the people whose needs the law is designed to protect actually experience it.

With The Law on Our Side is a citizen’s handbook to the law in our land, a top-to-bottom tour with a supremely expert guide. In captivating stories, it tells us what the law is about, how it works and most importantly why we should all care about it.

© Lady Hale 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

Critics Review

A personal journey around the law, with real and accessible stories and characters – a principled, timely and vital reminder of why justice matters
Philippe Sands, author of East West Street
Brenda Hale is a national treasure. If this country made any sense, we'd make this book part of the syllabus
Ian Dunt, author of How Westminster Works... And Why it Doesn't
The Spiderwoman rides again; this time in plain clothes to report on how our legal system protects everyone. With the law under threat from decades of cuts, complacency and political hostility, this accessible, forensic and breathtakingly humane explanation may be her most important mission yet
Shami Chakrabarti, author of Human Rights
Baroness Hale has done it again - combining wisdom, warmth, and razor-sharp insight to reveal how the law can serve not only the powerful but each and every one of us. This book is a rallying cry for justice that is truly on our side. It reminds us why the rule of law matters and why we must fight to preserve it
Cherie Blair CBE, KC
Lady Hale has drawn back the often impenetrable curtain of the law to show us how, at its heart, it exists to protect us all … Everyone who cares about a fair and just society should read this book
Sarah Langford, author of In Your Defence
Lady Hale opens the doors of the British legal system with clarity, insight, and a passion for justice ... She writes with conviction and a deep belief in the power of the law to serve everyone ... A reminder of how rare it is to hear from someone who has sat at the very top and still takes the time to observe from the ground. She is, without question, a pioneer - and a living testament to how far the law has come, and how far it still must go
Dr Charlotte Proudman, Barrister
Essential reading. This is a remarkably accessible and engaging exploration of the social function of law and its vital role in protecting those whose voices are often unheard. With her legendary intellectual rigour and clarity, Lady Hale draws on her experience as a jurist and educator to demystify complex legal principles and bring them to life through compelling, real-world examples
Professor Dame Hazel Genn
An excellent beginner's guide to the work of the courts be someone who knows them from both sides
Jonathan Sumption, author of The Challenges of Democracy
[A] uniquely comprehensive and accessible explanation of our court system and law-making process… Hale shows why access to justice matters for everyone
Week
[With the Law on Our Side] is primarily a book about everyday justice and on this it is powerful and urgent … The fundamental problem is how society thinks about justice … [Lady Hale's] book reminds us why it matters
Financial Times

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