Juror swears oath on a river in legal first

He was met with a “quizzical” look from the court usher, who asked him to do a sip test to ensure it was not a toxic substance.

“The judge called me in and said he’d never had a request like this before – he wasn’t hostile at all, intrigued if anything,” he told the BBC.

Mr Powlesland explained that his devotion for the river, which includes planting trees along its banks, removing litter and campaigning against water pollution, is like a religion.

“I told him the river was effectively my god, and that I hold the river to be sacred”.

On this basis, the judge allowed the oath alongside a secular affirmation.

“Although I love my river I don’t know what Thames Water have been doing to it recently.”

The 38-year-old lives on a boat on the Roding, the third-largest river in London. He is the founder of the River Roding Trust, a charity that works to clean and preserve the river.

He is also the co-founder of Lawyers for Nature, a group that advocates for legal representation for elements of the natural world.

“It’s really to try and reimagine the relationship between nature and the law, and for me it’s a powerful thing to bring a piece of that nature into the courtroom.”