Opening and Closing a Case
If opening a case you should always introduce yourself and the other side to the Court. For example: Your Honour/Sir/Madam/Master I appear in this case for the Claimant and my friend Mr/Miss/Mrs. appears for the Defendant.
Civil Matter
In a civil trial the claimant’s solicitor will make the opening speech. The opening speech involves taking the judge through the statements of the case and providing an outline and guide to your case. It should provide a summary of the evidence that will be produced and should not go into any details in relation to the content of the testimony. The opening speech will detail the issues to be decided and you should provide a summary of the facts that you seek to establish. However, in the county court the defendant’s solicitor can make the opening speech and if they do they are not entitled to make a closing speech, without the leave of the court. You should hand the judge a bundle of documents and take him or her through the chronology of the matter to provide the judge with a picture of the events in the case. The opening speech should be lively and interesting to engage the court. You should use plain language and use eye contact to build rapport with the judge. You should refer to your client by his or her name in order to personalise them, and refer to the other side, for example as the ‘respondent/defendant’ etc.
Following the opening speech the claimant will give their evidence. This is done by oral examination and the sequence of the questioning is examination-in-chief of the claimant’s side (to include witnesses), cross-examination by the defendant’s side, re-examination. The defendant will then give their evidence and can make an opening speech. The judge can, however, dispense with this, particularly in fast-track cases. The sequence of questioning for the defendant’s evidence (to include witnesses) is examination-in-chief by the defendant’s side, cross-examination by the claimant’s side and re-examination.
The defendant may make a closing speech and the claimant will then make a closing speech. In a civil matter the claimant’s solicitor will always have the final word. The closing speech is your final attempt to address the court. It should integrate the evidence the court has heard with your theory of the case and present your underpinning argument. In your final speech you should rebut or explain the evidence that weakens your case and explain how the law applies. If in your opening speech you raised questions, then in your final speech you must answer them based upon the evidence that has been heard. The closing speech should be well structured, be easy to follow and sum up the major points.
Criminal Matter
In criminal matters the prosecution have the right to make an opening speech. If it is a simple case then very often the Prosecution will forgo an opening speech. If the Prosecution do decide to have an opening speech it should be kept brief. It should provide a non-contentious summary of the case. The Prosecution then proceed to present their case. After their evidence has been heard the defence have the opportunity to give an opening speech and the present their evidence. If the defence decide to make an opening speech it should start with a comment on the evidence given so far by the prosecution, then provide an outline of the evidence to come and conclude with a summary of the questions that they think need to be answered.
The closing speech is the final attempt to address the court. It needs to integrate the evidence that has been heard with your theory of the case. Both the Prosecution and the Defence have the opportunity to give a final speech. The closing speech should be short, but long enough to cover the ground and make any final impact.
Updated 12 March 2026
This article provides a broadly accurate general introduction to the conventions for opening and closing speeches in civil and criminal proceedings in England and Wales. However, readers should note several points of clarification and limitation.
In civil proceedings, the article’s description of the general sequence is broadly consistent with the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) and associated Practice Directions. However, the article slightly oversimplifies the position on opening speeches. Under CPR PD 28 (fast-track) and PD 29 (multi-track), the trial judge has a wide discretion to dispense with or curtail opening speeches, and in practice many fast-track trials proceed with very brief or no formal openings. The article’s statement that in the county court the defendant may make the opening speech but then loses the right to a closing speech without leave of the court reflects an older procedural convention; in modern practice, the CPR grants judges broad case management powers that may modify these conventions. Readers should consult CPR Parts 28, 29, and 32 and the relevant Practice Directions for the current procedural framework.
Regarding examination-in-chief: the article does not mention that, in civil proceedings, witness evidence is now almost always given by way of a written witness statement standing as evidence-in-chief (CPR r.32.5), with oral examination-in-chief being the exception rather than the rule. This is a material omission that could mislead students about current civil trial practice.
In criminal matters, the general description of prosecution and defence speeches is broadly consistent with the Criminal Procedure Rules (CrimPR) and the Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996. However, the right of the defence to make an opening speech in the Crown Court is governed by s.2 of the Criminal Procedure Act 1865 and s.79 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 provisions as interpreted in practice, and readers should note that defence opening speeches are only available where the defence calls evidence. The article does not make this qualification explicit. Readers should consult the CrimPR (current version on legislation.gov.uk) and the Crown Court Compendium for up-to-date guidance.
The article does not address Magistrates’ Court procedure separately, where conventions on opening and closing speeches differ in practice from Crown Court procedure.
Overall, the article remains a useful basic introduction but should not be relied upon as a comprehensive or procedurally precise account of current practice. Students should supplement it with the current CPR, CrimPR, and relevant Practice Directions.
