The court considered an appeal where the jury had been invited to draw an inference from the defendant’s silence at interview that the defendant ‘had not had a chance to prepare his story’ as being its equivalent. Held: The court accepted the inference as proper in the circumstances. Citations: [2003] EWCA Crim 1767 Links: Bailii … Continue reading Ramadan El-Delbi, Regina v: CACD 20 Jun 2003
The public right of navigation (PRN) is a right to public use of the river. The river may be used by the public for purposes of exercise and recreation as well as transport and commerce. At common law PRN cannot be lost by lack of use over time. ‘A public right of way on highways … Continue reading Wills Trustees v Cairngorm Canoeing and Sailing School: HL 1976
The applicants wished to challenge the confiscation of their goods by the Commissioners of Customs and Excise on their return to Dover. They appealed the refusal of Legal Aid. Held: The Convention guaranteed the right to legal assistance for someone charged with a criminal offence and who could not afford representation, but these condemnation proceedings … Continue reading Regina (Mudie and Another) v Dover Magistrates’ Court and Another: CA 4 Feb 2003
The mother of the child on behalf of whom the application was made, was to face trial for murder. The child was in care and an order was sought to restrain publiction of material which might reveal his identity, including matters arising during the trial. Held: (Hale LJ dissenting) The court in this case was … Continue reading Re S (A Child): CA 10 Jul 2003
The claimant sought judicial review challenging the restrictions on the sale of electoral registers to registered credit reference agencies. Following Robertson (1) the new regulations created two registers, and the claimant sought to be able to purchase the records for its register of addresses. Held: The consultation had been adequate. The regulations did not create … Continue reading I-CD Publishing Ltd v The Secretary of State, The Information Commissioner (Interested Party): Admn 21 Jul 2003
The case asked what duty the respondent had, in respect of youths sentenced to be detained during Her Majesty’s Pleasure before 30th November 2000, to review their continued detention at regular intervals. A statement said that once a tarriff had been set the Secretary would only consider matters relating to the crime or the defendant’s … Continue reading Regina on the Application of Smith v The Secretary of State for the Home Department: Admn 3 Apr 2003
The applicant was serving two life sentences for Mafia related activities. He challenged nine decrees issued by the Minister of Justice under which he was held under a special prison regime for a period of four years. His case related to delays by the courts in dealing with his challenge. The Court said: ‘the applicant … Continue reading Ganci v Italie: ECHR 30 Oct 2003
Two defendants appealed in respect of alleged offences under common law of causing a public nuisance. One had sent race hatred material, and the other bomb hoaxes, through the post. Both claimed that the offence was so ill defined as to be an infringement of their rights. Held: The offence of causing a public nuisance … Continue reading Goldstein, Rimmington v Regina: CACD 28 Nov 2003
Citations: [2003] EWHC 2453 (Admin) Links: Bailii Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Practice Updated: 08 June 2022; Ref: scu.187620
Citations: [2003] EWHC 2454 (Admin) Links: Bailii Statutes: Criminal Justice Act 1988 39 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Crime Updated: 08 June 2022; Ref: scu.187616
The defendant appealed against a confiscation order. He had used a company to defraud suppliers on the continent of substantial sums. He said that his involvement in the conspiracy was only toward the later end and that he had received no benefit in fact. Held: The court may often be entitled to make robust inferences … Continue reading Olubitan v Regina: CACD 7 Nov 2003
The claimant’s child had died as a result of negligence in hospital. The parents had been told the result of police investigation and decision not to prosecute, and the hospital’s own investigation, but had not been sufficiently involved. There remained unresolved suspicions of negligence having been covered up. They had been refused legal aid to … Continue reading Khan, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for Health: CA 10 Oct 2003
PC (Belize) A witness identified the accused only making the link between the man he knew as R and the accused as the result of an improper leading question by prosecuting counsel. There had been no identification parade as required under Belize law and the judge should have ‘warn[ed] the jury of the dangers of … Continue reading Aurelio Pop v The Queen: PC 22 May 2003
The applicant challenged an order for his extradition to the US. He had been convicted in his absence having absconded from bail. Held: He had been arrested and held on the basis that he was a convicted person, but the procedure should have allowed that having been convicted in his absence, in contumacy, he should … Continue reading In re Guisto (application for a writ of Habeas Corpus) (Criminal Appeal from Her Majesty’s High Court of Justice): HL 3 Apr 2003
PC (Trinidad and Tobago) The appellants had been convicted of murder and their capital sentences commuted. They now sought to challenge the convictions as to the admission of and directions given on the identification evidence. However the judge’s notes had been lost, and there remained no direct evidence as to the form of any misdirection. … Continue reading Bertrand Roberts and Roland Roberts v The State: PC 15 Jan 2003
The police officer had been accused of an offence. The case was discharged under the section at committal. The Commissioner sought to commence disciplinary proceedings on the same evidence. Held: The tests of the two sets of hearings were different. The magistrates had been asked to see whether there was sufficient evidence to justify putting … Continue reading Regina (on the Application of Redgrave) v The Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis: CA 22 Jan 2003
A firm of accountants had agreed to provide their services as experts in a case on the basis that they would be paid by taking part of any damages awarded. The respondent claimed that such an agreement was champertous and unlawful. Held: The tort of champerty as such had been abolished, but the rule remained … Continue reading Regina (Factortame Ltd and Others) v Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (No 8): CA 3 Jul 2002
The appellant had been detained in a mental hospital after a conviction. Later released, he was recalled, but he was not given written reasons as required by a DoH circular. However the SS referred the recall immediately to the Tribunal. He appealed from refusal of a finding that his subsequent detention had been unlawful. Held: … Continue reading Lee-Hirons v Secretary of State for Justice: SC 27 Jul 2016
In order to use the power to issue a warrant of commitment, committing the defaulter to custody, the court must conduct a fair and public hearing to decide what is the appropriate order to make in all the circumstances. The power to issue the warrant is discretionary. Such a warrant is a mode of enforcement … Continue reading Regina v Harrow Justices ex parte Director of Public Prosecutions: 1991
The defendant had been convicted of murder in Scotland. He requested a transfer to an English prison. The trial judge recommended a tariff of eight years which was eventually set at 12 years by the respondent. That figure also exceeded the maximum recommended by the English judges who had reviewed the sentence. He complained that … Continue reading McFetrich, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department: Admn 30 Jun 2003
The plaintiffs alleged breach of copyright case involving music and sought to have admitted in evidence similar fact evidence showing that the defendants had published music resembling material protected by copyright in the past. The defendant apealed. Held: Lord Denning MR said: ‘The admissibility of evidence as to ‘similar facts’ has been much considered in … Continue reading Mood Music Publishing Co v De Wolfe Ltd: CA 1976
The defendants, young boys, had set fire to paper and thrown the lit papers into a wheelie bin, expecting the fire to go out. In fact substantial damage was caused. The House was asked whether a conviction was proper under the section where the defendant had given no thought to a risk of damage, but … Continue reading Regina v G and R: HL 16 Oct 2003
The prisoner had been convicted in 1996 of the murder of three police officers. His tariff had been fixed at 30 years. Material was to be placed before the parole board which was not to be disclosed to the appellant or his legal advisers. Instead it was proposed that special counsel should hear the material … Continue reading Roberts v Parole Board: Admn 19 Dec 2003
When police officers executed a search warrant, it was not proper to remove articles at large, in order later to sift through them, and then to return material not covered by the warrant. There is no absolute prohibition against removing articles for which legal professional privilege was claimed, provided the officer had reasonable grounds for … Continue reading Regina v Chesterfield Justices and Others, Ex Parte Bramley: QBD 10 Nov 1999
Extended Determinate Sentence created Other Status The prisoner was subject to an extended determinate sentence (21 years plus 4) for 10 offences of rape. He complained that as such he would only be eligible for parole after serving two thirds of his sentence rather than one third, and said that this was discriminatory. Held: The … Continue reading Stott, Regina (on The Application of) v Secretary of State for Justice: SC 28 Nov 2018
These appeals concern the statutory provisions governing the eligibility for compensation of persons convicted of a criminal offence where their conviction is subsequently quashed (or they are pardoned) because of the impact of fresh evidence. It was argued that the failure to make payment amounted to a denial of the right to the presumption of … Continue reading Hallam, Regina (on The Application of) v Secretary of State for Justice: SC 30 Jan 2019
The court was asked whether proceedings in a military court against soldiers for disciplinary offences involved criminal charges within the meaning of Article 6(1): ‘In this connection, it is first necessary to know whether the provision(s) defining the offence charged belong, according to the legal system of the respondent State, to criminal law, disciplinary law … Continue reading Engel And Others v The Netherlands (1): ECHR 8 Jun 1976
The claimant sought damages for malicious prosecution, and sought to adduce similar fact evidence. The defendant appealed an order admitting the evidence. Held: Comparisons between admission of similar fact evidence in civil and criminal proceedings were made. In general, the greater the putative force of the evidence the less ready a court should be to … Continue reading O’Brien v Chief Constable of the South Wales Police: CA 23 Jul 2003
The imposition of an extended period of licence in respect of offences committed before 1992 did not infringe the defendant’s human rights. The defendant had been convicted of offences from 1976 and 1982. The commencement date for the 1991 Act was 1 October 1992. Held: The true nature of the provision was preventive, to ensure … Continue reading Regina v R (Sentencing: Extended licences): CACD 25 Jul 2003
The father applied to the court to have the media excluded from the hearing into the residence and contact claims relating to his daughter. Held: It was for the party seeking such an order to justify it. In deciding whether or not to exclude the press in the welfare or privacy interests of a party … Continue reading Child X (Residence and Contact- Rights of Media Attendance) (Rev 2): FD 14 Jul 2009
The House was asked whether someone who wished to appeal against an extradition order had an obligation also to serve his appellant’s notice on the respondent within the seven days limit, and whether the period was capable of extension by the court. Held: The appeal failed (Lord Rodger dissenting). Giving notice, for the purposes of … Continue reading Mucelli v Government of Albania (Criminal Appeal From Her Majesty’s High Court of Justice): HL 21 Jan 2009
The defendant took a cocktail of drink and drugs and, whilst intoxicated, assaulted pub landlord. He said that he did not know what he was doing, and had no mens rea, that self-induced intoxication could be a defence to a charge of assault, and that the judge had misdirected the jury on the issue. Held: … Continue reading Director of Public Prosecutions v Majewski: HL 1976
In each case the prisoners challenged their transfer to cellular confinement or segregation within prison or YOI, saying that the transfers infringed their rights under Article 6, saying that domestic law, either in itself or in conjunction with recent decisions of the European Court of Human Rights, acknowledged that serving prisoners have a right to … Continue reading King, Regina (on The Application of) v Secretary of State for Justice: CA 27 Mar 2012
The defendants appealed against their convictions which had been based upon evidence of visual identification. Held: Identification evidence can be unreliable, and courts must take steps to reduce injustice. The judge should warn the jury of the special need for caution before convicting the accused in reliance upon the correctness of identification. No special form … Continue reading Regina v Turnbull and Another etc: CCA 9 Jun 1976
The applicant was a male nurse at Broadmoor Special Hospital. He was on duty while patients were saying goodbye to visitors. He approached the detained patient telling him to ‘come on’ and allegedly punched him on the shoulder. The patient brought . .
Two defendants accused of murder each sought to place blame for the victim’s death on the other. One sought to rely upon the other’s record of violence as evidence of his co-accused’s propensity to violence.
Held: The record was admissible. By . .
(New Zealand) Solicitors resisted requests to disclose papers in breach of legal professional privilege from their professional body investigating allegations of professional misconduct against them.
Held: The appeal was allowed. The . .
The claimant had been arrested. He had been refused access to a solicitor whilst detaiined, but, in breach of statutory duty, he had not been given reasons as to why access was denied. He sought damages for that failure.
Held: If damages were . .
The defendant was to be charged with offences associated with terrorism. He had sought stay of the trial as an abuse of process saying that he had been tortured by English US and Pakistani authorities. The judge made an order as to what parts of the . .
The appellant challenged a confiscation order made on his conviction of VAT fraud. It was argued that one could not be made unless a proper notice had been given, and none of the offences occurred before 1995. On the assumption that section 1 of the . .
If the court could only postpone confiscation proceedings in exceptional circumstances, it behoved the court before allowing such an adjournment to enquire into the justification, and to record the circumstances which made it exceptional. The . .
The applicant was serving two life sentences for Mafia related activities. He challenged nine decrees issued by the Minister of Justice under which he was held under a special prison regime for a period of four years. His case related to delays by . .
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Prosecution’s application for retrial. Judges: The Vice-President of the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) Lord Justice Fulford Mr Justice Picken And Mr Justice Martin Spencer Citations: [2020] EWCA Crim 1351 Links: Bailii Statutes: Criminal Justice Act 2003 76 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Crime Updated: 09 November 2022; Ref: scu.682458
The prosecutor appealed from the acquittal of the defendant on a charge of murder. He had subsequently been said to have admitted to the offence while in prison on other offences. Held: The confessions did amount to new evidence within the section. However the confessions were not reliable. They were inconsistent with the evidence, and … Continue reading Mielll, Regina v: CACD 21 Dec 2007
The defendants appealed against convictions for conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. They said that the fact that an investigation followed a false allegation was insufficient to found a complaint, and that the extent of the crime was so unclear as to infringe the human right to a fair trial. Held: The appeal failed. … Continue reading Regina v Cotter and Others: CACD 10 May 2002
Mr Leander had been refused employment at a museum located on a naval base, having been assessed as a security risk on the basis of information stored on a register maintained by State security services that had not been disclosed him. Mr Leander complained that he should have been provided with the information in question, … Continue reading Leander v Sweden: ECHR 26 Mar 1987
Fair Coment on Political Activities The defendant newspaper had published articles wrongly accusing the claimant, the former Prime Minister of Ireland of duplicity. The paper now appealed, saying that it should have had available to it a defence of qualified privilege because of the claimant’s status as a politician. Held: The appeal failed (Lords Hope … Continue reading Reynolds v Times Newspapers Ltd and others: HL 28 Oct 1999
The money laundering regulations create a conflict between private rights and criminal provisions, particularly the restriction on information which might prejudice an investigation may be under way. Conflicts were resolved by guidance from NCIS. The court set out a procedure to be followed where compliance with an order for disclosure of information in civil proceedings … Continue reading C v S and Others (Money Laundering: Discovery of Documents): CA 3 Oct 1998
Appeals were brought complaining as to the apparent reversal of the burden of proof in road traffic cases and in cases under the Terrorism Acts. Was a legal or an evidential burden placed on a defendant? Held: Lord Bingham of Cornhill said: ‘The overriding concern is that a trial should be fair, and the presumption … Continue reading Sheldrake v Director of Public Prosecutions; Attorney General’s Reference No 4 of 2002: HL 14 Oct 2004
The defendant was convicted of murder. Evidence during the trial suggested a possibility of manslaughter, but neither the defence nor prosecution proposed the alternate verdict. The defendant now appealed saying that the judge had an independent duty to leave that option to the jury. Held: The appeal succeeded. The judge should have left a manslaughter … Continue reading Regina v Coutts: HL 19 Jul 2006
(Grand Chamber) The claimants complained of the use against them of hearsay evidence in their trials. Held: ‘the underlying principle is that the defendant in a criminal trial should have an effective opportunity to challenge the evidence against him. This principle requires not merely that the defendant should know the identity of his accusers so … Continue reading Al-Khawaja v The United Kingdom; Tahery v The United Kingdom: ECHR 15 Dec 2011
The defendants appealed against their convictions for murder saying that the court should not have relied upon hearsay evidence. A witness had refused to give evidence, but his earlier evidnece was used. Held: The appeals failed. The judge had acted properly in that when considering the exercise of his judgment under section 78 of the … Continue reading Adeojo and Another v Regina: CACD 6 Feb 2013
The defendant appealed against the extent of fine and costs awards made against him following conviction for effective demolition of a substantial victorian property within a conservation area without consent. The court had refused to believe his statements as to his assets and income, but had also refused a confiscation order. The defendant said that … Continue reading Rance v Regina: CACD 9 Oct 2012
CS Damages of 200,000 pounds by way of exemplary damages had been awarded against the police for unlawful arrest and assault. Held: The court gave a guideline maximum pounds 50,000 award against police for wrongful arrest and wrongful imprisonment. Comparisons were proper with personal injury cases. It is important to identify and quantify the various … Continue reading Thompson v Commissioner of Police of Metropolis; Hsu v Same: CA 20 Feb 1997
The defendant brothers appealed convictions for murder. They had pleaded self defence. The injuries on the deceased suggested a substantial number of wounds were inflicted when he was in a curled up defensive post. Held: The provocation direction was requested, and there was evbidence to support it as a possibility. It could have been given … Continue reading Van Dongen and Another, Regina v: CACD 5 Jul 2005
Claimants sought damages for personal injuries incurred when, in Pristina, Kosovo and during a riot, British soldiers on a UN peacekeeping expedition fired on a car. Held: The incidents occurred in the course of peace-keeping duties. It was not argued that they occurred in combat, and it was established that in cases of riot, soldiers … Continue reading Bici and Bici v Ministry of Defence: QBD 7 Apr 2004
(Grand Chamber) The appellants had each been convicted of more than one murder and had been sentenced to whole life terms. They complained that the absence of a possibility of review or remission was a breach of their rights. Held: For a life sentence to remain compatible with Article 3 there must be a prospect … Continue reading Vinter And Others v The United Kingdom: ECHR 9 Jul 2013
The claimant advanced funds to the respondent for him to invest in a bank of which the claimant had insider knowledge. In fact the defendant did not invest the funds, the knowledge was incorrect. The defendant however did not return the sums advanced, saying he need not return it because the contract was for an … Continue reading Patel v Mirza: SC 20 Jul 2016
The applicants complained that as an unmarried couple they had been excluded from consideration as adopters. Held: Northern Ireland legislation had not moved in the same way as it had for other jurisdictions within the UK. The greater commitment to traditional family structures did not however justify the difference. The rules were unlawful discrimination.Lord Hoffmann … Continue reading In re P and Others, (Adoption: Unmarried couple) (Northern Ireland); In re G: HL 18 Jun 2008
The claimant alleged that she had been discrimated against in her work for the appellant, a member of the diplomatic staff at the Saudi Embassy in London. She now appealed against a decision that the respondent had diplomatic immunity. Held: The appeal was allowed: ‘the question whether the exception in article 31(1)(c) would have applied … Continue reading Reyes v Al-Malki and Another: SC 18 Oct 2017
The applicant had dual Iraqi and British nationality. He was detained by British Forces in Iraq under suspicion of terrorism, and interned. Held: His appeal failed. The UN resolution took priority over the European Convention on Human Rights where there was a conflict between them. ‘If the Security Council, acting under Chapter VII, consider that … Continue reading Al-Jedda v Secretary of State for Defence: CA 29 Mar 2006
The appellant had been charged with and disciplined for a prison offence. He was refused legal assistance at his hearing, and it was accepted that the proceedings involved the determination of a criminal charge within the meaning of article 6 of the Convention, that the deputy controller was not an independent tribunal and that the … Continue reading Greenfield, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department: HL 16 Feb 2005
The claimant alleged complicity by the defendant, (now former) Foreign Secretary, in his mistreatment by the US while held in Libya. He also alleged involvement in his unlawful abduction and removal to Libya, from which had had fled for political persecution. The defendants now appealed from rejection of the defendants’ claim to state immunity and … Continue reading Belhaj and Another v Straw and Others: SC 17 Jan 2017
Each applicant having been convicted of indecent assaults involving children, now appealed an order banning them from working with children. Held: The orders were not penalties within article 7. The order was available in the absence of a conviction, and it was intended as a preventive measure rather than a punitive one. The section could … Continue reading Regina v Field (Brian John); Regina v Young (Alfred): CACD 12 Dec 2002
The defendant appealed against his conviction for murder, saying that he should have been allowed to rely on a plea of diminished responsibility given the changes to section 2 of the 1957 Act introduced in 2009. He said that his alcoholism should have been treated as explaining his loss of self control and amounting to … Continue reading Dowds v Regina: CACzD 22 Feb 2012
The AG appealed against a sentence of three years detention imposed for a burglary of a residence not using violence, but which was targetted against elderly people. Held: The general tariff for such offences was five to six years where there had been a trial. Though it was right to reflect the general sentencing for … Continue reading Attorney-General’s Reference (No 124 of 2008), Regina v Doran: CACD 11 Nov 2008
The issue in this appeal against sentence is whether there is any legal inhibition against the imposition of a determinate sentence to be served at a time commencing at the end of a minimum term specified under section 269 and Schedule 21 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003. Citations: [2011] EWCA Crim 2236, [2012] Crim … Continue reading Regina v Taylor: CACD 14 Jul 2011
The Court was asked whether a disqualification order could be made under Section 28 of the 2000 Act, disqualifying an adult from working with children, based on an offence committed before the 2000 Act came into force. Held: A relatively relaxed approach was required. The conviction was a gateway criterion for the making of an … Continue reading Field, Regina v: CACD 12 Dec 2002
Loss of Confidentiality Protection – public domain A retired secret service employee sought to publish his memoirs from Australia. The British government sought to restrain publication there, and the defendants sought to report those proceedings, which would involve publication of the allegations made. The AG sought to restrain those publications. Held: A duty of confidence … Continue reading Attorney-General v Guardian Newspapers Ltd (No 2) (‘Spycatcher’): HL 13 Oct 1988
The applicant challenged the terms of a non-derogating control order. It was anticipated that unless prevented, he would fight against UK forces in Iraq. Held: The section allowed the Secretary of State to impose any necessary conditions, but subject to a system of supervision by the courts. The parties now disputed whether the Act gave … Continue reading MB, Re, Secretary of State for the Home Department v MB: Admn 12 Apr 2006
(Commission) The claimants had been convicted of terrorist-type offences in Northern Ireland and were serving prisoners in HMP The Maze. They protested at a change of regime imposed in 1976, resulting in them not being permitted association with the rest of the prison community. Prisoners complained at ‘close body’ searches, including anal inspections, which were … Continue reading McFeeley and others v The United Kingdom: ECHR 15 May 1980
The defendant had been convicted of several offences involing serious assaults. He now appealed against a sentence to imprisonment for public protection. Judges: Latham L, Burton, Teare JJ Citations: [2007] EWCA Crim 2650, [2007] All ER (D) 376 Links: Bailii Statutes: Criminal Justice Act 2003 225 Citing: Cited – O’Brien, Harris, Moss, Llewellyn and others … Continue reading Crees, Regina v: CACD 24 Oct 2007
The prisoner disputed the calculation of the date when she would become entitled to consideration for early release under a Home Detention Curfew. The Secretary of State appealed against a decision that his policy guidance was unlawful. Held: The appeal succeeded. Where several offences were imposed at the same time, those sentences under one year … Continue reading Noone, Regina (on the Application of) v HMP Drake Hall and Another: CA 17 Oct 2008
Proceedings had been brought to challenge the validity of Orders in Council which had frozen the assets of the claimants in those proceedings. Ancillary orders were made and confirmed requiring them not to be identified. As the cases came to the Supreme Court, applications were also now made to lift the anonymity orders. Held: The … Continue reading In re Guardian News and Media Ltd and Others; HM Treasury v Ahmed and Others: SC 27 Jan 2010
Citations: [2007] EWCA Crim 1760, [2007] 2 Crim App R 30 Links: Bailii Statutes: Criminal Justice Act 2003 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Cited by: Cited – O’Dowd v Regina CACD 12-May-2009 The defendant appealed against his conviction for serious sexual offences. The trial was very lengthy after the prosecution introduced bad character evidence from other … Continue reading Wallace v Regina: CACD 16 Jul 2007
Parents of a child had resisted care proceedings, and now wished the BBC to be able to make a TV programme about their case. They applied to the court for the judgment to be released. Applications were also made to have a police officer’s and medical staffs’ and social workers’ names to be excised. Held: … Continue reading British Broadcasting Corporation v CAFCASS Legal and others: FD 30 Mar 2007
The defendant appealed his conviction for rape. He said the girl had consented, despite having drunk substantial quantities of alcohol. Held: The voluntary consumption of much alcohol did not remove the possibility that the girl had consented to sex. Capacity to consent might evaporate well before she became unconscious, but it was a question of … Continue reading Bree, Regina v: CACD 26 Mar 2007
The defendant objected to the admission against him of documents of his convictions for similar sexual offences in Poland. Held: So far as the rule in Hollington v Hewthorn ever applied in criminal cases, it was not disapplied by section 99 of the 2003 Act. Judges: Lord Justice May, Mr Justice David Clarke and Mr … Continue reading Regina v Kordansinski: CACD 7 Nov 2006
The defendant said that the judge in setting his sentence had failed correctly to identify the time he had spent in custody awaiting trial, and which would act as time served. Held: The defendants were entitled to a direction. If the time for varying the order under s155 of the 2000 Act had passed, an … Continue reading Norman and Others, Regina v: CACD 20 Jul 2006
Appeal against an extradition order for his extradition to Spain. The court was concerned with an issue of ‘extraneous circumstances’ arising under, respectively, section 6(1) of the 1989 Act and section 13 of the 2003 Act. Judges: Scott Baker LJ, Openshaw J Citations: [2006] EWHC 1239 (Admin), [2007] 1 WLR 768 Links: Bailii Statutes: Extradition … Continue reading Hilali v The National Court, Madrid and Another (No 5): Admn 26 May 2006
The claimants had each been detained without trial for more than two years, being held as suspected terrorists. They were free leave to return to their own countries, but they feared for their lives if returned. They complained that the evidence used to justify their detention was derived from practices involving torture by the US … Continue reading A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, Mahmoud Abu Rideh Jamal Ajouaou v Secretary of State for the Home Department: CA 11 Aug 2004
The claimant had dual Irish and US nationality. He therefore also was a citizen of the EU. He complained that the British rules against payment of job seekers’ allowance were discriminatory. The matter had already been to the ECJ. Held: The residence test as applied was not in contravention of EU law. ‘[T]he proper interpretation … Continue reading Collins v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions: CA 4 Apr 2006
The plaintiff sued for brain damage suffered at birth by use of forceps at the alleged professional negligence of his doctor. The Court of Appeal had reversed the judge’s finding in his favour. Held: In this case most of the evidence at issue was that of expert witnesses, and the court might therefore be more … Continue reading Whitehouse v Jordan: HL 17 Dec 1980
The Borough appealed against acquittal by the magistrates of the defendant parent accused of failure to ensure the regular attendance of their child at school. The child had attended only irregularly. The parents had contacted the school and authorities and sought help and co-opertaed with the Borough, but their daughter had been unco-operative and eventually … Continue reading London Borough of Sutton v S: Admn 26 Oct 2004
An indictment had not been signed despite a clear statutory provision that it should be. The defects were claimed to have been cured by amendment before sentence. Held: The convictions failed. Sections 1(1) and 2(1) of the 1933 Act which provided for a bill of indictment (which had of itself no legal standing save as … Continue reading Clarke, Regina v; Regina v McDaid: HL 6 Feb 2008
The defendants had had confiscation orders made against them. They had appealed on the basis that the orders were made more than six months after sentence. The prosecutor now appealed saying that the fact that the order were not timely did not invalidate them. Held: The appeal was allowed. The confiscation orders made by the … Continue reading Regina v Soneji and Bullen: HL 21 Jul 2005
The appellant had been convicted in 1997 of robbery and false imprisonment. His case was now refererred by the Criminal Cases Review Commission. The defendant had, on advice from his solicitor refused to answer questions at the police station. The Court of Human Rights had found that the inference drawn from that silence at trial … Continue reading Beckles, Regina v: CACD 12 Nov 2004
The claimant sought increased maternity pay. Before beginning her maternity leave she had been awarded a pay increase, but it was not backdated so as to affect the period upon which the calculation of her average pay was based. The court made a detailed comparison of the regimes for protection under the Employment Rights Act … Continue reading Alabaster v Barclays Bank Plc and Another: CA 3 May 2005
Admission of a previous conviction for possession of a bladed article into a trial as evidence of bad character pursuant to the provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 2003. Citations: [2009] EWCA Crim 2235, (2009) 173 JP 616 Links: Bailii Statutes: Criminal Justice Act 2003 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Evidence Updated: 14 June 2022; … Continue reading O, Regina v: CACD 5 Oct 2009
The respondent resisted a claim of unfair dismissal and race discrimination on the basis that the employment contract was illegal since the claimant was an immigrant and unable to work without a work permit. Held: The Court of Appeal upheld a defence of illegality to a teacher’s complaint against a school of unlawful discrimination by … Continue reading V v Addey and Stanhope School: CA 30 Jul 2004
The applicant sought an order that his application for a joint residence order should be held in public. Held: Though there was some attractiveness in the applicant’s arguments, the issue had been fully canvassed by the ECHR. The time had come for the court to consider in each case whether a proper balance of competing … Continue reading Pelling v Bruce-Williams, Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs intervening: CA 5 Jul 2004
The appellants, each convicted of murder, challenged the minimum periods of detention ordered to be served. Held: As to the starting point for sentencing, judges should have regard to the published practice directions, and not the letter from the Lord Chief Justice of 31 December 2003, which became a practice direction in 2004. As to … Continue reading Regina v Sullivan; Regina v Gibbs; Regina v Elener; Regina v Elener: CACD 8 Jul 2004
Challenge to a series of interim sexual risk orders (‘ISROs’) made pursuant to section 122E of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 Judges: Mr Justice Fordham Citations: [2022] EWHC 1176 (Admin) Links: Bailii Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Practice Updated: 08 June 2022; Ref: scu.677846
The House considered the availability of duress as a defence on a charge of aiding and abetting murder. Referring to the basic elements of criminal liability, mens rea and actus reus: ‘Both terms have, however, justified themselves by their usefulness; and I shall myself employ them in their traditional senses – namely, actus reus to … Continue reading Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland v Lynch: HL 1975
The claimant was awarded damages for injuries suffered in his work as a seaman. The respondents claimed that he should not receive damages, since he had made false declarations as to his health in order to obtain employment, hiding his epilepsy condition. Held: Clunis established that the court would not support an action founded upon … Continue reading Hewison v Meridian Shipping Pte, Coflexip Stena Offshore Ltd, Flex Installer Offshore Ltd: CA 11 Dec 2002
The defendants applied for the defence statements of co-defendants to be disclosed. A co-defendant was to give evidence for the Crown, and they sought to have it excluded as unreliable. Held: The 1996 Act created a duty of secondary disclosure, where a defence statement might be of assistance to the co-defendants. Actual disclosure remained for … Continue reading Regina v Cairns; Regina v Zaldi, Regina v Chaudary: CACD 22 Nov 2002
The Appellant had introduced a system of fining lorry drivers returning to the UK with illegal immigrants hiding away in their trucks. The rules had been found to be in breach of European law and an interference with their human rights. The penalties were substantial, though there existed a system of appeals. Held: The principle … Continue reading Secretary of State for the Home Department v International Transport Roth Gmbh and others: CA 22 Feb 2002
Parties challenged the compliance of proceedings with the convention where there had been considerable delay. Held: The reasonable detention provision (article 5(3)) and the reasonable time requirement (article 6(1)) conferred free-standing rights, which could be broken notwithstanding absence of effect on the fairness of the trial. The threshold for delay was high, but once established … Continue reading Dyer v Watson and Burrows: PC 29 Jan 2002
Hudoc Judgment (Merits and just satisfaction) Violation of Art. 6-1 (publicly); No violation of Art. 6-1 (impartiality); Non-pecuniary damage – finding of violation sufficient; Costs and expenses partial award – domestic proceedings; Costs and expenses partial award – Convention proceedings‘The Court reiterates that the holding of court hearings in public constitutes a fundamental principle enshrined … Continue reading Diennet v France: ECHR 26 Sep 1995