I was caught speeding but it was a genuine emergency. Can I plead guilty but argue a special reasons defence? I received a distress call that a relative was seriously ill.

Firstly, it should be noted that Special Reasons is not a defence. It follows a guilty finding and is used to convince the Court not to impose a punishment because, whilst the offence has been committed, the circumstances were such that it would be wrong to impose a punishment.

In order for your Special Reasons argument to succeed, you will have to show that there was no alternative but to drive in the manner that you did and that your emergency must be “real, not nebulous, nor manufactured”. If it is anticipated, it is not an emergency and further you will have to show that the issue could not have been resolved by other means, for example, calling for an ambulance etc.

In some circumstances, a genuine emergency can amount to a defence of  “duress of necessity/circumstances” which would result in acquittal.