Because of the risk of a defendant later seeking to avoid the effect of the defence statement filed on his behalf, the practice should be for him to be asked to sign it to show his agreement and consent. There was a risk of a contradiction between elements of the defence statement and that put forward at trial, and the defendant needed to be clear as to what was to be said.
Citations:
Times 07-Jul-2000, Gazette 02-Nov-2000
Criminal Practice
Updated: 09 April 2022; Ref: scu.85608
