Appeals Flashcards
What are the 2 main things against which the defendant can appeal?
•appeal against conviction
•appeal against sentence
Who hears appeals from the magistrates court in the crown court?
1 judge + 2 mags
Appeal against conviction; what can they do to D’s conviction?
•uphold it
•quash it
•vary it
Appeal against sentence; what can they do to D’s sentence?
•uphold it
•decrease it
• increase it (only to mags max sentencing powers)
In order to appeal from the crown court, D must…
Apply for, and be granted ‘leave’ to appeal
What does ‘leave’ to appeal mean?
Permission to seek appeal
Which court hears appeals from the crown court?
Court of Appeal
Who hears appeals from the crown court in the court of appeal?
3 judges
What can the court of appeal not do to D’s sentence?
Increase it
Case example: appeal against conviction from the crown court
R v George; Quashed it, and ordered a retrial. Granted leave because of forensic evidence.
Case examples; appeal against sentence from the crown court
R v Herbert; reduced sentence because crown court had not given enough consideration to guilty plea
R v Philpott; upheld 17 year sentence because the judge in the crown court had got the sentence correct
What can the prosecution appeal against?
• acquittal
•unduly lenient sentence
Why can appeals against acquittal be done?
-due to jury nobbling
-due to new and compelling evidence
Case example: appeal against an unduly lenient sentence
R v Yates
What is the appellant claiming in a case stated appeal?
Law has been misapplied or misinterpreted
Which court hears case stated appeals and from which court can these appeals be made?
Kings bench division heats case stated appeals from either the magistrates court or the crown court
What powers does the Kings Bench Division have?
Confirm, reverse, vary, remit
If a party does not agree with the decision of the Kings Bench Division, who is left to appeal to?
Supreme Court
What is needed to make appeals to the Supreme Court?
Leave, will be given when there is a good chance of success or another compelling reason
Explain the ways a defendant can appeal a criminal case
-if the defendant is found guilty in the magistrates court they have an automatic right to appeal against conviction and sentence.
-These appeals will be handled by a judge and 2 magistrates in the Crown court.
-the crown court can uphold the mags’ decision, quash the decision, or vary the decision, but
only downwards, for example varying the conviction from s47 ABH to battery.
-For sentence, the Crown can uphold the sentence, reduce the sentence, or increase it –
but only to the maximum sentence the Mags could have given originally
-If a defendant was originally found guilty in the Crown, they can seek ‘leave’ to appeal to the Court of Appeal
-The application for leave will be dealt with by
one Lord / Lady Justice. If permission to appeal is granted, the appeals will be heard by 3 Lord / Lady Justices.
-With regards to convictions, the CoA have the same powers as the crown court, but they can also order a re-trial if they quash an unsafe conviction, R v George
-For sentencing, they can uphold (R v Philpott) or decrease the sentence (R v Herbert), but they cannot increase the sentence if D is the one appealing.
-Finally, no matter which court D’s case was heard, he can make a ‘case stated appeal’. This is an appeal about a point of law when D is claiming that the original magistrates or judge have made a mistake in law.
-The appeal is heard by the King’s Bench Divisional Court
-The KBD can confirm the decision, reverse the
decision, or clarify the point of law and remit the case back to the original court.
-From the KBD, D can seek leave to make a further appeal to the Supreme Court, but
only if the case concerns something of general public importance,
Explain the ways prosecution can appeal a criminal case
-The prosecution have various grounds of appeal which mainly come from the various Criminal Justice Acts.
-Firstly, they can appeal against a judge’s ruling on a point of law that leads to a directed acquittal. If the judge wrongly stops a case, P can ask this decision to be reviewed by a higher court.
-P can also appeal against acquittal in 2 situations.
-Firstly, when there is evidence of
‘jury nobbling’, i.e jury members being bribed or threatened. This means the acquittal was not necessarily valid and a re-trial is needed, Brinks-Mat
-Secondly, if there is new and compelling evidence not presented at the original trial,
there can be a re-trial with this new evidence, R v Dunlop
-P can also appeal against an unduly lenient sentence with the permission of the Attorney General
-They can do this if they feel the original court did not give a harsh enough sentence considering the evidence, R v Yates
-P also has 2 appeals based on points of law.
-Firstly, they can refer a point of law to the Court of Appeal if the AG gives permission. This allows the Court of Appeal to clarify the point of law, but will not affect the verdict of the case.
-Alternatively, P can make a ‘case stated appeal’ to the King’s Bench Divisional Court
-The KBD can confirm the decision, reverse the decision, or clarify the law and remit the case
to the original court.
-From the KBD, P can seek leave to make a further appeal to the Supreme Court, but only if the case concerns something of general public importance.
