Professional identity, legitimacy and managerialism at the Crown Prosecution Service

Abstract Tasked with enforcing criminal law, public prosecutors worldwide enjoy broad discretion. Existing literature on prosecutorial discretion and accountability tends to discuss the regulation of or analyse influence procedural environment in which operate. This paper focuses occupational culture as an important factor affecting decisions. It draws particular attention understudied aspect prosecutors’ professional identity: legitimacy and, specifically, self-legitimacy, ie belief have their own make decisions individual cases. The presents research findings from direct observations interviews reveal a sense loss self-legitimacy amongst Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) staff due constant monitoring by colleagues managers. all-pervasive managerialism, paradoxically, undermines very (and, relatedly, transparency) CPS has had work so hard develop since its inception.