Appeals - General Principles
Updated 31/03/08
Principle
The statements of principle set out below apply to all appeals listed below:
- To the Crown Court refer to Appeals to the Crown Court elsewhere in this guidance.
- To the Court of Appeal refer to Appeals and References to the Court of Appeal in this section>
- Section 36 References refer to Section 36 References by the A.G., elsewhere in this guidance
- Appeals from Criminal Cases Review Commission
- Unduly Lenient Sentences refer to Unduly Lenient Sentences elsewhere in this guidance
- To the Administrative (Divisional) Court refer to Appeals to the Administrative (Divisional) Court elsewhere in this guidance
- To the House of Lords refer to Appeals to the House of Lords elsewhere in this guidance>
- To the European Court on Human Rights refer to European Courts elsewhere in this guidance>
The CPS will be involved in a large number of such appeals, mainly as respondent, but sometimes in the higher courts as appellant or as applicant and on other occasions as an interested party.
Representation at Appeal Hearings
In any case where the CPS or the Director is named as respondent, the advocate should be instructed to appear unless the court indicates that this is not necessary. In appeals against sentence at the Court of Appeal the respondent need not be represented unless notified to the contrary.
In some cases where the CPS is not the respondent, representation is still imperative. For example, in applications for judicial review, the justices or a Crown Court judge will normally be the true respondent. As it is not their practice to instruct the advocate to attend, the Divisional Court will look to the CPS to assist the Court with the facts and matters of law in cases where we have prosecuted. The CPS is content to act in that way.
In other cases, the need for the CPS to be represented may be less clear. Although there are limited resources of time and money, it may not be in the best interests of the Service for the applicant or other interested parties to make their points unchallenged. The CPS also has a duty to assist the Court with argument when there is a possibility that only the appellant or applicant's point will be heard. In cases of doubt, the Court should be consulted.
Continuity of Advocate
Continuity is important when preparing appeal cases. Wherever possible, both those who prepared and prosecuted the case at the original hearing should be involved or consulted in the appeal preparation. This will ensure that all relevant factors are known to those conducting the appeal. The Court of Appeal will usually insist that the appeal hearing be attended by the advocate who prosecuted at the trial. Exceptionally, there may be cases where the point is of such importance that the CPS will decide to instruct a more senior or leading advocate. It will also occur in Unduly Lenient Sentence referrals where the Law Officers will require Senior Treasury Counsel to be instructed.
Referrals
In Appeals to the Higher Courts it is necessary to have a system of referral to Headquarters.
Refer to Appeals to the Court of Appeal in this section.
Last updated 31st March 2008