The Director of Public Prosecutions sought to appeal against a decision of the Court of Appeal. The application was lodged one day out of time, but it remained out of time. The prosecution asserted that the House had the discretion to extend the time for appeal. History showed that such discretion had been given the courts on several occasions with regard to applications by the defence, but no such statutory extension had been given to the prosecution. It was clear that a distinction should be drawn between the application of the rules to the defence and to the prosecution. The jurisdiction of the House of Lords in such matters is statutory and, subject only to the Human Rights Act, the House of Lords had no power to vary its jurisdiction.
Citations:
Gazette 08-Mar-2001, Times 09-Feb-2001
Criminal Practice
Updated: 10 April 2022; Ref: scu.88703