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Court of Criminal Appeal 1 December 1999

Regina v Denis BRITTAIN

[1999] NSWCCA 450

Other

Citation: Regina v Denis Brittain [1999] NSWCCA 450
Court: Court of Criminal Appeal, New South Wales
Date: 1 December 1999
Judge(s): Wood CJ at CL, Sully J, Simpson J

Background

The applicant had been convicted in the District Court before Hosking DCJ and sought to have that conviction overturned on appeal. The appeal came before the Court of Criminal Appeal in December 1999.

During the course of argument, matters arose that prompted the Crown Prosecutor to seek instructions. Following those instructions, the Crown conceded that the appeal should be allowed and that no new trial ought to be ordered.

The judgment does not disclose the nature of the original charges or the specific grounds of appeal, nor does it elaborate on the matters that came to the Crown's attention during argument.

  • Whether the conviction should be quashed in light of the matters raised during argument
  • Whether, if the conviction were quashed, the Court should exercise its discretion to order a new trial

Decision

The Court allowed the appeal on the basis of the Crown's concession. No independent reasoning is set out in the judgment beyond the recording of that concession and the resulting orders.

On the question of a retrial, the Crown also conceded that it was appropriate, as a matter of discretion, for the Court not to order one. The Court accepted that concession and declined to direct a new trial.

The judgment is brief and does not articulate any findings of legal principle. It records the procedural outcome only, reflecting that the matter was resolved by agreement between the parties once the Crown accepted the appeal's merit.

Orders Made

  • The appeal is allowed.
  • The conviction and sentence are quashed.
  • The Court will not order a new trial.

Key Takeaways

  • The Court of Criminal Appeal quashed both conviction and sentence following a concession by the Crown during oral argument.
  • Where the Crown concedes an appeal in criminal proceedings, the Court of Criminal Appeal can act on that concession and quash the conviction without delivering extensive reasons.
  • The decision whether to order a new trial after quashing a conviction remains a matter of discretion for the Court of Criminal Appeal, and the Crown's concession that no retrial was appropriate was accepted here.
  • No findings of substantive legal principle emerge from this decision. The judgment is confined to recording the procedural outcome and the orders made.
  • The underlying basis for the Crown's concession is not disclosed, limiting the precedential value of the decision.

Legislation and Cases Referenced

No legislation or cases are cited in the judgment or the accompanying metadata.