R (Appellant) v Layden (Respondent)

Hearing listed

Case summary
Appeal
Change log

Case summary

Case ID

UKSC/2023/0154

Parties

Appellant(s)

The King

Respondent(s)

Stuart James Layden

Issue

Is the jurisdiction of the Crown Court to retry a defendant under sections 7 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1988 contingent upon the fulfilment of the procedural requirements contained in section 8 of the same act, such that a defendant who has not been arraigned within two months of the date of the order committing him for retrial cannot be lawfully retrial (save with leave of the Court of Appeal)?

Facts

On 11 April 2013, the respondent and five other defendants were convicted of the murder of Ian Church on 4 May 2012. On 19 March 2015, the Court of Appeal of England and Wales granted the respondent’s appeal against this conviction on the basis that the trial judge’s directions in relation to the identification evidence in his case had been inadequate. It directed that he be arraigned on a fresh indictment within two months, i.e. by 19 May 2015. The appellant was granted bail on 2 April 2015. On 14 April 2015, the appellant served the respondent with a fresh indictment. A Plea and Case Management Hearing took place on 7 May 2015, at which the respondent was present and represented by counsel. No arraignment took place at that hearing, but counsel for the respondent informed the court that the case would be contested. The court directed that the trial was to take place on 28 September 2015. On the morning of the trial, the appellant submitted that it was not necessary to arraign the respondent. The respondent did not raise an issue with this. The court log erroneously indicates that the respondent was arraigned a few minutes after this discussion. At the beginning of the trial, the court clerk informed the jury in the normal way that the respondent had pleaded not guilty to the charge of murder. The first trial was discharged, owing to issues surrounding the disclosure of unused material. The second trial concluded on 17 May 2016, with the appellant being convicted. The Court of Appeal refused permission to appeal against his conviction. In 2018, the respondent applied to the Criminal Cases Review Commission for a review of his conviction. Following the Court of Appeal’s decision in R v Llewellyn in February 2022, the Commission considered that there was a real possibility that the Court of Appeal would quash his conviction, and so referred the case to the Court of Appeal. On 25 October 2023, the Court of Appeal, concluding that it was bound by its previous decision in R v Llewellyn, quashed the respondent’s conviction on the basis that it was unsafe. The appellant now appeals to the UK Supreme Court.