Law courts open a gift shop for visitors

The Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine of Lairg, has a head for business as well as the law.

The Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine of Lairg, has a head for business as well as the law.

To try to make a profit from the 31,800 tourists a year that tramp through the Royal Courts of Justice (RCJ) in the Strand, he has opened a shop selling court gifts.

The shop at the RCJ aims to break even in the first year and make a 20 per cent profit thereafter and, if it proves a success, more court shops will opened around the country.

But viewers of Ally McBeal or LA Law hoping to take home a replica judge's gavel will be sadly disappointed. This is a strictly educational enterprise and gavels are used by American, not British, judges.

The shop, begun as a one-year pilot, is part of a wider initiative to open up the courts and foster wider understanding of law by selling books about the legal system, as well as a range of souvenirs. The profits will be reinvested in improvements to the court's services.

Ian Magee, chief executive of the Court Service, said: "The Lord Chancellor supports opening up the courts to tourists and other visitors as a way of helping dispel some of the myths and misunderstandings surrounding the legal system. The new shop offers an added attraction to those visiting this historic legal building."

Ian Hyams, director of the Supreme Court Group, based at the RCJ, said: "Many people are familiar with the work of the criminal courts through TV dramas and high-profile trials but they are less familiar with the work of the civil courts."