Loughlin’s (Jason) Application
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Judge | Morgan LCJ |
| Judgment Date | 21 April 2015 |
| Neutral Citation | [2015] NIQB 33 |
| Court | Queen's Bench Division (Northern Ireland) |
| Year | 2015 |
| Date | 21 April 2015 |
1
Neutral Citation No. [2015] NIQB 33
Ref:
MOR9611
Judgment: approved by the Court for handing down
Delivered:
21/04/2015
(subject to editorial corrections)*
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE IN NORTHERN IRELAND
______
QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISION (JUDICIAL REVIEW)
_______
Loughlin’s (Jason) Application [2015] NIQB 33
IN THE MATTER OF AN APPLICATION BY JASON LOUGHLIN
FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW
________
AND IN THE MATTER OF A DECISION OF THE PUBLIC PROSECUTION
SERVICE FOR NORTHERN IRELAND
_______
Before: Morgan LCJ, Weir J and Treacy J
MORGAN LCJ (delivering the judgment of the court)
[1] The Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 (the “2005 Act”) established
a scheme for the reduction of the sentences of offenders who offered to assist in the
investigation and prosecution of offending by others and the review of the sentences
of those co-operating offenders in certain prescribed circumstances. The applicant,
who was tried and acquitted in R v Haddock & Others [2012] NICC 5, seeks judicial
review of the decision of a specified prosecutor by which the specified prosecutor
(“the prosecutor”) declined to refer the cases of Robert Stewart and Ian Stewart (“the
Stewarts”) back to the court which had sentenced them on 5 March 2010.
Mr Scoffield QC and Mr Sayers appeared for the applicant, Mr McGleenan QC and
Mr Coll QC appeared for the respondent and Mr Lyttle QC and Mr McGuinness
appeared for the Stewarts. We are grateful to all counsel for their helpful written and
oral submissions.
2
The statutory framework
[2] Section 73 of the 2005 Act provides for a reduction in sentence for a defendant
who in specified circumstances has offered to provide assistance:
“73 Assistance by defendant: reduction in sentence
(1) This section applies if a defendant—
(a) following a plea of guilty is either convicted of
an offence in proceedings in the Crown Court
or is committed to the Crown Court for
sentence, and
(b) has, pursuant to a written agreement made
with a specified prosecutor, assisted or offered
to assist the investigator or prosecutor in
relation to that or any other offence.
(2) In determining what sentence to pass on the
defendant the court may take into account the extent
and nature of the assistance given or offered.
(3) If the court passes a sentence which is less than
it would have passed but for the assistance given or
offered, it must state in open court—
(a) that it has passed a lesser sentence than it
would otherwise have passed, and
(b) what the greater sentence would have been….”
It is an indication of the advantage which a defendant may gain from these
provisions that section 73(5) of the 2005 Act enables the court to apply the reduction
in sentence even when to do so would reduce the resulting sentence below the
minimum term otherwise prescribed by law.
[3] Section 74 of the 2005 Act provides for the review of a sentence which has
already been imposed. One of the ways in which this can arise is when a defendant
who has received a discount thereafter knowingly fails to give assistance in
accordance with the agreement (section 74 (2)(a)):
“74 Assistance by defendant: review of sentence
(1) This section applies if—
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3 cases
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Re Loughlin (application for judicial review (Northern Ireland))
...[2017] UKSC 63 THE SUPREME COURT Michaelmas Term On appeal from: [2015] NIQB 33 Lady Hale Lord Kerr Lord Wilson Lord Carnwath Lord Hughes In the matter of an application by Jason Loughlin for Judicial Review (Northern Ireland) Appellant Tony McGleenan QC Peter Coll QC (Instructed by Public ......
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JR65’s Application
...and in particular upon what will best serve the purposes of judicial review in that context.” [28] In Re Loughlin’s (Jason) Application [2015] NIQB 33 the Divisional Court took the view that Re D and Axa both recognised that in determining standing it was necessary to examine the context. T......
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Magee's (Eamonn) Application
...of a leave application I consider, without formally deciding, that I should follow the principles set out in Re Loughlin’s Application [2015] NIQB 33. [26] It is also important to recognise the wording of Section 36 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988. That wording requires the Director of Pub......