What to wear in court

[ShopTattsyrup]

The title probably makes this sound more exciting than it is, but I have been called to give evidence in court in a few months. I have no idea what I would be expected to wear!

I presume it needs to be smart. But I don't work in an office so don't own reems of that type of clothes and have limited desire to buy any (but will if needs be).

I own a navy blue trousers suit that I wear for interviews - but does it needs to be black? I have got a black knee length cotton A-line dress but is that too casual? Does a shirt/blouse need to be white?

Are high heels expected?

Any advice welcome!

Your trouser suit will be fine as long as it. Is comfortable. You don’t need to wear black. I would wear flat shoes in case you are on your feet to give evidence. I was giving evidence for quite a while so asked to sit down but still glad I wore flat shoes.

Honestly as long as you look fairly well-turned out you’ll look better than a good deal of people in court. Some trousers and a plain t-shirt will be grand. I saw witness give evidence in basketball shorts and a Mickey Mouse sweatshirt yesterday.

Crew neck cardigan buttoned and trousers

Only barristers need to be in black and white.

Your suit sounds perfect. No need for a white blouse. Anything fairly smart that you feel good in will work.

Ooh me too! But I've got to give my evidence in a US court! I've bought flat but dressy sling backs from TK Maxx, to be worn with black slacks and a soft black blazer sourced from ebay. I have loads of blouses so I'll choose the one that speaks to on the day.

And try really, really hard not to jump up midway through and shout OBJECTION

You really don’t need to worry! And your navy trouser suit sounds completely suitable. A relatively plain dress would also be fine. Just wear something in which you feel confident and comfortable - nothing that’s going to interfere with being able to concentrate on your evidence.

Unless you're the accused in a criminal trial or the pursuer or defender in a civil trial your everyday clothes you'd wear to work/ supermarket/ out for lunch are fine. As long as they're clean and avoid offensive slogans or images.

Edit if you're there in a professional capacity, e.g social worker, expert witness you should be a bit smarter as you want to look "professional"

Yours sounds much more interesting than mine! Out of pure nosy-ness are you based in the US or are you going to the US for the court trial? If it's the latter that sounds much more interesting than my train journey around the North West of England in drizzly October!

Thank you all for your help and for putting my mind at rest 😊.

I think in my head I was imagining I would have to turn up looking like an extra from Cavannah QC!

Witness to a crime, wear anything you like as long as it's clean and has no holes.

Expert witness in a civil commercial case or as an expert accountant in a commercial fraud case: navy interview suit with a plain top.

Now the poor OP will think she can’t wear her navy suit unless she’s an expert witness!

I'm a lawyer
It doesn't matter what you wear. Anything fairly smart that you feel comfortable in will be fine

Oh goodness, just meant there's no need to buy anything special or special dress code. There is a dress code of course but those who need to stick to it will already know it.

Ha! I shall psych myself up for the day by telling myself I am an expert - behold my very old H&M suit 🤣

Clean and tidy is fine. No need to buy special clothes.

Blimmin ‘eck, @GeorgeTheFirst - I imagine anyone on this thread who hasn’t declared otherwise is a lawyer. Or, erm … an ex-lawyer.

I am a criminal barrister. You can wear anything however assuming you want to make a good impression/be taken seriously you should opt for smart so suit or the dress sound great as so many have said. I came on to add you often have lots of waiting around as a witness so just have in your head you may need to wear that suit 2 days before you’re called to give evidence. So have a few top choices ready. Also I always think it looks odd to the jury who have seen witnesses in a case to have only 1 ask to sit down when evidence is usually given standing so wear shoes you are able to stand in for some time. Good luck and remember just stick to the truth and you can’t go wrong.

Er , yes. I might just once or twice have been inside a court.

I'm travelling to New York from Scotland to give my evidence! Not the skyscrapery bit, the suburban mall bit 😎 I've googled the best route to Target, Whole Foods and of course Panda Express, the mall Chinese of the gods.

I'm a terrified flier so I'll be glad when it's all over and I can stick to weekends away by train, much more my comfort zone!

I'm not a lawyer, I'm an expert witness from a niche, geeky industry. My normal work wear is summer beach slacks from the chazzer and a denim jacket.

Are high heels expected?

?

I spent 20 years in courts and I can tell you something clean is all you need.

We once had a bloke and a Beaver patrol T-shirt so really it doesn’t matter. Just look like you would do if you were going to work.

Disagree about the sitting down.

In my experience, it’s only professional witnesses like police officers and so on who stand up

totally agree about hanging around though take a really good book

I wore a patterned midi skirt, knee high boots and a slash neck silky top with a cardi over.

You don’t need to look professional, you just need to look like a reliable witness.

Absolutely although I was giving evidence in my professional capacity as a lawyer but had long covid and was tired. Judge said yes so I don’t see the problem. Also the jury are usually inexperienced so don’t see that they would think it was odd. As long as they can see you clearly it’s fine.