The Criminal Cases Review Commission is an independent statutory body which can require a court to hear an appeal against a criminal conviction. In particular, if the Commission believes that a person serving in a public body has materials that may assist in relation to an investigation, section 17 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995 empowers the Commission to require such a person to supply it with such materials. The Commission has long asked for its powers to be extended so as to apply to materials held by private bodies. Against that background, the Bill inserts a new section 18A into the 1995 Act so as to enable the Commission to obtain access to material possessed or controlled by someone who is not a person to whom the section 17 power applies. Legal professional privilege is a fundamental human right long established in the common law which protects the confidentiality of communications between a lawyer and his client. It is also recognised as an aspect of the right to respect for private and family life and correspondence under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. An order issued under section 18A requiring disclosure would override legal professional privilege. This power would also allow the Commission access to other material that would normally be covered by an expectation of privacy- perhaps most obviously personal medical records. However, this report focuses on legal professional privilege in the light of its relationship with the right of access to court, which has been described as a ‘constitutional right