Plea (guilty or not guilty)
The defendant’s answer to the charge.
A guilty plea means the defendant agrees they committed some or all of the offences. A guilty plea can be entered at any point, including on the day of trial.
If the defendant pleads not guilty, the case is listed for trial. MoJ publishes guilty plea rates for the Crown Court by area, which you can see on each court page.
Official sources
This is a plain-English summary, not legal advice. The official sources above are the authority.
See also
Find court · How a case moves from charge to sentence · All explainers
