Gonzalez v R

• Jurisdiction: Cayman Islands
• Judge: (Zacca, P., Kerr and Georges, JJ.A.)
• Judgment Date: 22 November 1984
• Date: 22 November 1984
• Court: Court of Appeal (Cayman Islands)

Court of Appeal

(Zacca, P., Kerr and Georges, JJ.A.)

GONZALEZ

and

R.

D. Muirhead, Q.C. and S. McField for the appellant;

A.S. Smellie, Crown Counsel, for the Crown.

Cases Cited:

(1) Kray, In reELRUNK, [1965] Ch. 736; [1965] 1 All E.R. 710; sub nom. R. v. Kray(1965), 109 Sol. Jo. 176; 49 Cr. App. R. 164, dictum of Lord Gardiner, L.C. applied.

(2) R. v. Jefferies, [1969] 1 Q.B. 120; [1968] 3 All E.R. 238; (1968), 112 Sol. Jo. 783; 52 Cr. App. R. 654; [1968] Crim. L.R. 497, followed.

Legislation construed:

Court of Appeal Law (Law 9 of 1975), s.4(f)(i): The relevant terms of this sub-section are set out at page 293, lines 33–39.

s.5: The relevant terms of this section are set out at page 292, line 41 – page 293, line 15.

s.13: The relevant terms of this section are set out at page 294, lines 1–10.

Criminal Procedure-bail-bail pending trial-appeal against refusal of bail-Court of Appeal has no jurisdiction under Court of Appeal Law, s.5 to entertain appeal against refusal of bail pending trial-only ‘convicted person’ may appeal

Courts-Court of Appeal-jurisdiction-Court of Appeal Law, s.13(f) increases court”s powers in criminal matters when court already has jurisdiction-does not extend jurisdiction conferred by s.5

The appellant applied to the Grand Court for bail under the Criminal Procedure Code, s.27 while awaiting trial.

The Grand Court (Summerfield, C.J.) refused the appellant”s application for bail (reported at 1984–85 CILR 136). The appellant appealed from this order and the Court of Appeal considered whether, in view of the fact that the appellant was not a ‘convicted person,’ it had jurisdiction, under the Court of Appeal Law, s.5, to hear the appeal.

The appellant submitted, inter alia, that the court had the necessary jurisdiction since (i) nothing in the Court of Appeal Law forbade an appeal from an order of the Grand Court refusing bail to a person awaiting trial; and (ii) s.13(f) vested the necessary jurisdiction in the court, by providing that in an appeal in a criminal case the court could exercise the same powers as in a civil case, since these powers included, under s.4(f), the power to hear without leave appeals where the liberty of the subject was in question.

Held, dismissing the appeal:

(1) The Court of Appeal had no jurisdiction to entertain an appeal from an order of the Grand Court refusing to grant bail to a person in custody awaiting trial. The court”s appellate criminal jurisdiction was conferred by the Court of Appeal Law, s.5 which clearly provided that only a ‘convicted person’ had the right to appeal to the Court of Appeal and since the appellant was not a ‘convicted person’ he had no such right (page 292, line 36 – page 293, line 28).

(2) Section 13(f) did not increase the jurisdiction of the court in criminal matters but merely extended the powers that the court could exercise in relation to an appeal if it already had jurisdiction. Since the jurisdiction of the court in criminal matters was limited to that conferred

by s.5 it could not have entertained any appeal by the appellant on an interlocutory matter (page 294, lines 17–29).

(3) The appeal would therefore be dismissed.

GEORGES, J.A.: delivering the judgment of the court: The
issue for determination is whether the Court of Appeal has juris-
diction to entertain an appeal from a decision of a judge of the
Grand Court refusing to grant bail to an applicant in custody
25	awaiting trial.
The right to appeal to the Court of Appeal is purely statutory.
The Court of Appeal has no inherent jurisdiction, Widgery, L.J.
delivering the judgment of the court in R. v. Jefferies (2) stated of
the Court of Appeal, Criminal Division ([1968] 3 All E.R. at
30	240):

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