Abstract
This article examines dicta in R v Cottrell pertaining to the extent to which the Criminal Cases Review Commission ought or should have regard to the principles adumbrated by the Court of Appeal in relation to leave to appeal in change of law cases. It concludes that a restatement of the Commission's policy statement to provide that, following R (on the application of the Director of Revenue and Customs Prosecutions) v Criminal Cases Review Commission, the CCRC would not have regard to the Court of Appeal's practice in leave-out-of-time cases was misconceived and wrong. The article further concludes that fears expressed by the Court of Appeal concerning the impact of change of law references on the court's workload were exaggerated because not informed by the practice of the CCRC. It examines critically the standard suggested by the Court of Appeal for referral of such cases, namely substantial injustice, and points to problems which the CCRC may well encounter in applying a formula which, at present, is nebulous.
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