form, organizers should keep in mind three basic challenges facing any reporting system. Accuracy The credibility of an entire programme may stand or fall on the accuracy of the information contained in public reports. Accuracy requires that case information be: 1) clearly presented; and 2) supported by observations made during the legal process or extracted from court documents. Accuracy with respect to legal analysis also requires that conclusions be clearly stated, as well as supported by reference to the applicable legal provisions or standards. If a monitor obtains information from secondary sources such as interviews, then case reports must reflect this in order to ensure that caution is used regarding the use of such information for public reports or other external use. Consistency Consistency requires that monitors: 1) report on the same issues (issue coverage); and 2) use an identical legal framework for analysis. To achieve consistent issue coverage, the subject matter or focus of reporting must be well defined, and reporting must target these issues. To achieve a consistent framework of analysis, monitors must understand and similarly apply the same legal standards in their analysis. Compilation Even if individual reports are accurate and monitors use a consistent approach, case reports should have a standardized format that allows for compilation of information among cases. This maximizes the ability for legal analysts to make meaningful use of all reported data and to compile reports, where appropriate. Compilation involves aggregating reports of cases to draw wider conclusions about systems or practices. Compilation is especially important for programmes that seek to make systematic findings based on a high number of cases monitored. 6.2 Basic components of a case report In organizing a standard case reporting template, it is useful to divide legal reporting on criminal cases into three main components: 1) case information; 2) fact reporting; and 3) legal analysis and findings. Understanding the difference between these components will allow flexibility when structuring a case reporting form and will help to organize information in a manner that will enable easier identification, analysis, and compilation of data. Case information Case information is a fundamental component of every trial-monitoring case report. It is usually included at the beginning of a report to identify the particulars of the criminal proceeding. Most commonly, basic case information includes: the name of the court; case file number; names of the accused; names of legal actors, including the judge, prosecutor, and defence lawyer (if any); name(s) of the victim(s); relevant procedural dates, including the date of arrest, custody, indictment, and hearing monitored; criminal 68 Trial-Monitoring: A Reference Manual for Practitioners