Following a weeklong trial at Blackfriars Crown Court in August 2019, our client MS was acquitted in little more than an hour of the offence of coercive and controlling behaviour towards his estranged wife.

This only became a criminal offence in 2015 but the evidence, in this case, was very weak as MS was able to provide documentary and photographic evidence showing that the complainant had not been forced to marry him as she claimed nor was she controlled and unhappy during the relationship.

At a late stage in the case, the Crown had also been obliged to reveal the complainants’ long history of applications for asylum or leave to remain this being her motivation for making allegations against our client in the hope of remaining in the UK.

This case was meticulously prepared by Tony Meisels of Lewis Nedas and John Waller of 15 New Bridge Street undertook the advocacy.