Dowsett v Criminal Cases Review Commission

Dowsett v Criminal Cases Review Commission

The CCRC was entitled to conclude that, despite the Article 6 violation found by the European Court of Human Rights, there was no real possibility that the conviction would not be upheld by the Court of Appeal. The nature of the breach and the evidence did not render the conviction unsafe, and the CCRC's evaluation...

Source-derived case information.

Parties
Claimant: James Dowsett; Defendant: Criminal Cases Review Commission
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
08 June 2007
Procedural Posture
Judicial Review / Judgment After Substantive Hearing
Outcome
Application for judicial review dismissed
Legal Topics
Disclosure Obligations, Article 6 ECHR, Safety of Conviction, CCRC Referral Powers
Criminal Law Human Rights Law Judicial Review Disclosure Obligations Article 6 ECHR Safety of Conviction CCRC Referral Powers

Source-derived case record

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

More case intelligence is available

Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.

Full judgment text Downloadable case file Legal principles 2 Authorities cited 14 Party arguments 2 Amounts and remedies 3
Sign in to unlock

Parties

James Dowsett

Claimant

Criminal Cases Review Commission

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Judicial Review / Judgment After Substantive Hearing

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the CCRC was required to refer the claimant's conviction to the Court of Appeal due to a finding by the European Court of Human Rights that Article 6 rights were violated
  2. 2 Whether a breach of Article 6 ECHR necessarily renders a conviction unsafe under domestic law
  3. 3 Proper application of section 13 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995 by the CCRC

Ratio Decidendi

The CCRC was entitled to conclude that, despite the Article 6 violation found by the European Court of Human Rights, there was no real possibility that the conviction would not be upheld by the Court of Appeal. The nature of the breach and the evidence did not render the conviction unsafe, and the CCRC's evaluation was within its statutory discretion.

Court Disposition

Application for judicial review dismissed

Orders

  • Ten days granted to file application for certificate and leave to appeal in writing
  • Order for detailed assessment for purposes of Legal Services Commission granted