Appeal from conviction of murder – whether a fair trial after a withdrawal by his counsel at the conclusion of his evidence. Counsel had said they were professionally embarrassed by new instructions.
Held: The appeal succeeded. The judge had faced a difficult situation but the allegations against the appellant were extremely grave. It was a murder case in which he faced a sentence of life imprisonment with a lengthy minimum term which might well mean that he would spend the remainder of his life in prison. The issues were, in the judge’s own view, ‘massively complicated’.
Moreover the judge found that the appellant had not deliberately engineered a situation in which his lawyers would have to withdraw. On the contrary, he found that this was something which the appellant had not even contemplated.
Proceeding would allow no further legal input from the defence and the instruction of new lawyers would have meant the loss of a day or two, but would have enabled them, with the appellant’s instructions and the assistance of the existing defence team’s notes of evidence, either to make a closing speech for the appellant or to assist him to prepare a speech to make himself. It would also have ensured appropriate defence input into the judge’s legal directions and route to verdict. This is not merely an academic point.
References: [2019] EWCA Crim 1736
Links: Bailii
Judges: Lord Justice Males
Jurisdiction: England and Wales
This case cites:
- Cited – Regina v Williams (Derron Anthony) CACD 2006 ([2006] EWCA Crim 1457)
Counsel had withdrawn on the fifth day of the trial of the defendant for rape after the prosecution witnesses had given their evidence and all that remained of the prosecution case was the defendant’s interview. The defendant (who wanted to . . - Cited – Regina v Kempster CACD 11-Dec-2003 (, [2003] EWCA Crim 3555)
Mantell LJ said that: ‘The judge has a discretion whether or not to grant an adjournment so as to permit fresh counsel to be instructed. The discretion has to be exercised with regard to the interests of justice in the particular case. The interests . . - Cited – Regina v Ulcay CACD 19-Oct-2007 (, [2007] EWCA Crim 2379, Times 07-Nov-07, [2008] 1 WLR 1209, [2008] 1 All ER 547)
The defendant appealed against his conviction, saying that his counsel and solicitors had withdrawn at the last moment on the grounds of professional embarrassment, the defendant having altered his instructions. New lawyers were unwilling to assist . .
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Last Update: 21 September 2020; Ref: scu.654023 br>