The Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Rules 1968

We, the Northern Ireland Supreme Court Rules Committee, being the authority having for the time being power under section 7 of the Northern Ireland Act 1962[^f00001] and section 49 of the Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Act 1968[^f00002] to make, amend or revoke rules regulating the practice and procedure of the Court of Criminal Appeal in Northern Ireland, hereby exercise those powers and all other powers enabling us in that behalf as follows:—

Citation and commencement

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These rules may be cited as the Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Rules 1968 and shall come into force on 2nd December 1968.

Interpretation

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• (1) In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires—

• “Act” means the Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Act 1968;

• “appellant” means an appellant under Part II of the Act, including a person who has given notice of application for leave to appeal;

• “Court” means the Court of Criminal Appeal in Northern Ireland;

• “the Minister” means the Minister of Home Affairs for Northern Ireland;

• “a party interested” means the prosecutor, or the Chief or other Crown Solicitor, or the person convicted or any other person named in or immediately affected by any order made by the judge of the court of trial or a solicitor authorised to act on behalf of a party interested, as defined by this rule;

• “the Registrar” means the Registrar of the Court of Criminal Appeal and includes any other officer of the Supreme Court directed by the Lord Chief Justice to exercise the powers and perform the duties of the Registrar under the Act;

• “recorded delivery” means delivery by the postal recorded delivery service;

• “shorthand” means any method of recording by means of symbols, other than longhand, where the recording is made by a person either by hand or by the use of a machine and shall include palantyping, stenotyping and speedwriting;

• “shorthand writer” means a person appointed by the Lord Chief Justice to take shorthand notes of criminal proceedings in a court of trial.

• (2) The Interpretation Act 1889[^f00003] shall apply to the interpretation of these rules as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parliament and as if these rules and the rules revoked by these rules were Acts of Parliament.

Forms

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• (1) The forms in the Schedule shall be used where applicable with such variations as the circumstances of the particular case require.

• (2) Any reference in these rules to a form means a reference to a form set out in the Schedule to these rules.

Certificate of trial judge

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• (1) The judge of the court of trial may grant a certificate in Form 1 under section 8(1) or 17(1) of the Act, either of his own motion or at the request of a person convicted on indictment or found not guilty on the ground of insanity, as the case may be.

• (2) An application for the grant of a certificate may be made to the court of trial or lodged with the Registrar.

• (3) The Registrar shall forward a copy of any certificate granted by the judge of the court of trial to the person to whom it relates or to his solicitor.

Notice of appeal and application for extension of time

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• (1) Notice of appeal or of an application for leave to appeal to the Court shall be given by completing Part 1 of Form 2 and so much of Part 2 thereof as relates to the notice and serving it on the Registrar.

• (2)

• (a) A notice of appeal or an application for leave to appeal shall be accompanied by a notice in Form 3 containing the grounds of appeal or application, whether or not the transcript of the proceedings has been received by the appellant.

• (b) If the appellant has been convicted of more than one offence, the notice in Form 2 shall specify the convictions or sentences against which the appellant is appealing or applying for leave to appeal.

• (c) The grounds of appeal or application set out in Form 3 may, with the consent of the Court, be varied or amplified within such time as the Court may allow.

• (3)

• (a) Notice of application to extend the time within which notice of appeal or of an application for leave to appeal may be given shall be given by completing so much of Part 2 of Form 2 as relates to the application and by giving at the same time notice of appeal or of an application for leave to appeal in accordance with the foregoing provisions of this rule.

• (b) Notice of an application to extend the time within which notice of appeal or of an application for leave to appeal may be given must specify the grounds of the application.

• (4) An appellant who is appealing or applying for leave to appeal against conviction may specify in Form 3 any exhibit produced at the trial which he wishes to be kept in safe custody for the purposes of his appeal.

• (5) Forms 2 and 3 shall be signed by the appellant, his counsel or solicitor, or by any other person authorised by the appellant and where a form is signed otherwise than by the appellant, his counsel or solicitor, the Court may treat such form as not constituting notice for the purposes of this rule unless it is supported by a statement signed by the appellant that he has authorised the person in question to sign the form on his behalf.

• (6) If Form 2 or Form 3 is not signed by the appellant and the appellant is in custody, the Registrar shall, as soon as practicable after receiving the form, send a copy of it to the appellant.

• (7) In the case of an appellant who does not require leave to appeal or who is given leave to appeal, a notice of application for leave to appeal shall be treated as notice of appeal, and in the case of an appellant who requires leave to appeal but who serves on the Registrar notice of appeal, the notice of appeal shall be treated also as an application for leave to appeal.

• (8) The Registrar shall send a copy of every notice received under this rule to the Chief or other Crown Solicitor and to the Clerk of the Crown and Peace of the court of trial who shall thereupon complete Form 4 and send it to the Registrar.

Notes and report of trial judge

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• (1) In the case of an appeal or an application for leave to appeal, the Registrar may request the trial judge to furnish to him a certified copy of his notes of the trial together with a report in writing giving his opinion upon the case or any point arising in it.

• (2) The Registrar shall send a copy of every notice given under rule 5 to the trial judge and shall also send him a copy of any documents referred to in such notice and any other document or information which the trial judge may require and which is in the possession of or under the control of the Registrar or which he is in a position to obtain.

• (3) This rule shall apply in the case of a reference by the Minister under section 19 of the Act as it applies in the case of an appeal or an application for leave under Part II of the Act.

Application for bail, leave to be present or reception of evidence

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• (1) Except where made to the Court orally, an application by the appellant—

• (a) to be admitted to bail pending the determination of his appeal or pending his retrial shall be in Form 5 and, unless notice of appeal or of an application for leave to appeal has previously been given, shall be accompanied by such a notice,

• (b) subject to paragraph (4), to be given leave by the Court to be present at the proceedings for which such leave is required shall be in Form 6,

• (c) that a witness who would have been a compellable witness at the trial be ordered to attend for examination by the Court shall be in Form 7,

• (d) that the evidence of a witness or any other evidence be received by the Court shall be in Form 7.

• (2) Forms 5 and 7 must be submitted where any application to which these forms relate is made, but Form 6 need not be submitted where the notice of appeal or application for leave to appeal contains an application to be present.

• (3) The form in every application to which this rule relates must be served on the Registrar.

• (4) Where an appellant is unrepresented or is under sentence of death he may be present at the hearing of his appeal or at any application relating to his appeal, other than an application before a single judge of the Court, without making an application for leave to be present under this rule.

Bail

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• (1) Where the Court directs the admission of an appellant to bail pending the determination of his appeal or pending his retrial, the Court shall determine the number of sureties, if any, the amount in which he and any sureties are to be bound and the conditions to be endorsed on the recognizances.

• (2) The recognizance of an appellant shall be in Form 8, and that of a surety in Form 9, except that in relation to an appellant admitted to bail pending his retrial his recognizance shall be in Form 10 and that of a surety in Form 11.

• (3) Any such recognizance may be entered into before the Registrar, a justice of the peace, a member of the police force either of or above the rank of District Inspector or, in case of an appellant who is in custody before the person having custody of him.

• (4) Where the Registrar does not take the recognizances he shall issue a certificate in Form 12 showing the conditions of the recognizances and the amount in which the appellant and any sureties are to be bound : and a person authorised to take a recognizance under this rule shall not be required or entitled to take it without the production of such a certificate as aforesaid.

• (5) A person authorised to take a recognizance from a surety under this rule shall not do so unless he is satisfied that the person entering into the recognizance is, in all the circumstances, a suitable person to do so.

• (6) Where a recognizance is taken by a person other than the Registrar, that person shall send it to the Registrar.

• (7) A person taking a recognizance under this rule shall give a copy to the person entering into the recognizance.

Release on bail

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• (1) The person having custody of an appellant shall—

• (a) on receipt of a certificate in Form 13 signed by the Registrar stating that the recognizances of any sureties required by the Court have been taken or on being otherwise satisfied that all such recognizances have been taken, and

• (b) on being satisfied that the appellant has entered into his recognizance, release the appellant.

• (2) Where the Court has granted bail pending retrial the Registrar on receipt of all the recognizances shall forward them to the Clerk of the Crown and Peace of the court by whom the appellant is to be retried.

Variation or revocation of bail

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• (1) Where the Court grants the application of an appellant to be admitted to bail pending the determination of his appeal or pending his retrial, the Court may at any time reduce the amount in which it is proposed that he or any surety should be bound or dispense with any of the sureties or modify any condition specified by the Court.

• (2)

• (a) Where an appellant is released on bail pending the determination of his appeal or pending his retrial, the Court may at any time without prejudice to the power to order the forfeiture of his recognizance or that of any of his sureties, order his arrest and recommittal to custody.

• (b) Where an appellant is recommitted to custody the person having custody of him shall forthwith notify the Registrar of the fact.

• (c) Nothing in this rule shall be deemed to prevent a person who has been recommitted to custody again being admitted to bail under this rule.

Forfeiture of recognizance

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Where an appellant is admitted to bail pending the determination of his appeal or pending his retrial and he fails to comply with a condition endorsed on his recognizance, the Court may order his recognizance and that of any of his sureties to be forfeited.

Custody of exhibits

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• (1) On a conviction on indictment the Clerk of the Crown and Peace shall, subject to paragraphs (2) and (4) and to any directions by the judge of the court of trial, make arrangements for the exhibits at the trial to be kept in safe custody until the expiration of 42 days from the date of conviction.

• (2) Where an appellant has given notice of appeal, or of an application for leave to appeal against conviction, the Registrar shall inform the Clerk of the Crown and Peace of the notice and give directions concerning the continued retention in safe custody of all exhibits produced at the trial.

• (3) The Clerk of the Crown and Peace shall make a list of all the exhibits placed in safe custody and where any exhibit is not in the custody of the court the name and address of the person who has custody of the exhibit must be included in the list.

• (4) Where the Court orders the appellant to be retried it shall make arrangements pending his retrial for the continued retention in safe custody of any exhibits.

• (5) Arrangements made under this rule may include arrangements for the inspection of an exhibit by an interested party.

Supply of documentary and other exhibits

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• (1) The Registrar may supply to the appellant or respondent documents, copies of documents or other things required for the appeal and in such case may make charges in accordance with the scales and charges fixed for the time being by the Treasury.

• (2) This rule shall not apply to the supply of transcripts of any proceedings or part thereof.

Examination of witness by Court

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• (1) An order of the Court to a person to attend for examination as a witness shall be in Form 14 and shall specify the time and place of attendance and the judge or other person before whom the examination shall be conducted.

• (2) The evidence of a witness taken before an examiner shall be taken in like manner as depositions are taken by a Magistrate's Court.

• (3) Every witness who attends for examination shall be paid a reasonable sum for travelling expenses and any sum so paid shall be certified by the Registrar and form part of the expenses of the prosecution.

Appointment of special commissioner

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An order of reference appointing a special commissioner under section 30(1)(b) of the Act shall specify the question for inquiry and report and may contain such directions as the Court may consider to be appropriate.

Abandonment of proceedings

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• (1) An appeal or an application for leave to appeal under Part II of the Act may be abandoned before the hearing of the appeal or application by serving on the Registrar notice thereof in Form 15.

• (2) The notice shall be signed by the appellant, his counsel or solicitor or any other person authorised by the appellant.

• (3) Where a notice is signed otherwise than by the appellant, his counsel or solicitor, the Court may treat the notice as not constituting a notice for the purposes of this rule unless it is supported by a statement signed by the appellant that he has authorised the person in question to sign the notice on his behalf.

• (4) The Registrar shall as soon as practicable after receiving a notice under this rule in respect of an appellant who is in custody, send a copy of it to the appellant, to the Chief or other Crown Solicitor and to the Clerk of the Crown and Peace of the court of trial.

• (5) Where an appeal or an application for leave to appeal is abandoned, the appeal or application shall be treated as having been dismissed or refused by the Court.

Hearing by single Judge

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A Judge of the Court shall, for the purpose of exercising any of the powers referred to in section 4(2) of the Act, sit in such place as he may appoint.

Determination by full Court

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• (1) Where a Judge of the Court has refused an application on the part of an appellant to exercise in his favour any of the powers referred to in section 4(2) of the Act, the appellant may have the application determined by the Court by serving a notice in Form 16 on the Registrar within 14 days, or such longer period as the Judge of the Court may fix, from the date on which notice of the refusal was served on him by the Registrar.

• (2) A notice under paragraph (1) of this rule shall be signed by the appellant, his counsel or solicitor, or by any other person authorised by the appellant.

• (3) Where a notice is signed otherwise than by the appellant, his counsel or solicitor, the Court may treat the notice as not constituting a notice for the purposes of this rule unless it is supported by a statement signed by the appellant that he has authorised the person in question to sign the notice on his behalf.

• (4) If the notice is not signed by the appellant and the appellant is in custody, the Registrar shall, as soon as practicable after receiving the notice, send a copy of it to the appellant.

Enforcement of fines

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• (1) Where the Court imposes a fine on an appellant the Court shall make an order fixing a term of imprisonment, not exceeding twelve months, which the appellant is to undergo if the fine is not duly paid or recovered.

• (2) Such an order may—

• (a) allow time for the payment of the fine,

• (b) direct payment of the fine by instalments of such amount and on such dates respectively as may be specified in the order.

Dismissal of appeal against hospital order

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