Sentence Appeal: Three Grounds and the Process That Follows
SaveYou can appeal against a sentence if the court made an error or imposed a punishment so far outside the guideline range that it cannot stand. The right to appeal belongs to the person sentenced, and the HS Criminal Law portal explains how the process works, what grounds exist and what happens after you lodge the notice.
Grounds for Appealing a Sentence
The Court of Appeal will interfere with a sentence on three grounds. The sentence is wrong in law, manifestly excessive, or both.
Wrong in law means the judge applied the wrong legal test, used the wrong sentencing guideline, or imposed a sentence the law does not permit for that offence. A community order for an offence that carries only custody, or a custodial term below the minimum where no exception applies, are examples.
Manifestly excessive means the sentence is so far outside the appropriate range that no reasonable judge, correctly directing themselves, would have passed it. A sentence at the top of the range is not manifestly excessive simply because you disagree with it; it must be plainly wrong.
The third ground combines the two: the judge made a legal error that led to a sentence outside the proper range.
What Does Not Amount to a Ground
Dissatisfaction with the length of the sentence is not a ground. The fact that another judge might have been more lenient does not make the sentence appealable. The guideline gives a range, and any sentence within that range, properly reasoned, will stand.
Time Limit and Leave
You have 28 days from the date of sentence to lodge notice of application for leave to appeal. The clock starts the day sentence is passed, not the day you decide to appeal.
Most sentence appeals require leave — permission from a single judge of the Court of Appeal. You apply for leave when you lodge the notice. The single judge reads the papers and decides whether the proposed appeal has merit. If leave is refused, you can renew the application to the full court.
A sentence of life imprisonment, or a hospital order under the Mental Health Act, carries an automatic right of appeal without leave.
Extending Time
An application lodged after the deadline needs an extension of time. You must explain the delay and show a good reason: illness, late receipt of the sentencing remarks, or failure by previous lawyers to advise you of the right to appeal. The longer the delay, the stronger the reason must be.
The Three-Stage Process
Appealing a sentence follows a defined sequence from lodging the notice to the final hearing.
- Lodge the notice of application for leave to appeal at the Criminal Appeal Office, stating the ground and enclosing the sentencing remarks and any reports the judge considered.
- The single judge reads the application and either grants leave, refuses it, or directs the Registrar to obtain further material such as a pre-sentence report or a transcript of mitigation.
- If leave is granted, the appeal is listed for a full hearing before two or three judges; if refused, you may renew to the full court within fourteen days.
At the full hearing, your barrister presents the argument and the Crown responds. The court announces its decision the same day in most cases.
What the Court Can Do
The Court of Appeal has three powers when it allows an appeal against sentence. It can reduce the sentence, substitute a different type of sentence, or quash the sentence and send the case back to the Crown Court for resentencing by a different judge.
Reduction is the most common outcome: the court lowers the term or fine to bring it within the appropriate range. Substitution occurs when the sentencing judge picked the wrong disposal altogether — custody where a community order was correct, for example. Remittal is rare and reserved for cases where the original sentencing exercise was so flawed that the appellate court cannot fairly reconstruct it.
The court cannot increase a sentence on an appeal by the defendant. Only the Attorney General can refer a sentence as unduly lenient, and that is a separate process not covered here.
Loss of Time Direction
If the single judge or the full court considers the application or appeal to be wholly without merit, it may direct that time spent in custody after lodging the notice does not count towards the sentence. This is called a loss of time direction and is intended to deter hopeless appeals. You will be warned of the risk before the court makes the direction.
Evidence and New Material
The Court of Appeal generally decides sentence appeals on the material that was before the sentencing judge. Fresh evidence is admitted only in exceptional circumstances: it must be credible, relevant to the ground of appeal, and incapable of having been obtained with reasonable diligence before sentence was passed.
A medical report that post-dates sentence, showing a condition that worsened after the hearing, might be admitted. A character reference you could have obtained before the hearing will not be.
Legal Representation
You do not need a solicitor to lodge the notice, but most appellants instruct one. Legal aid covers sentence appeals where you meet the financial threshold and the application has reasonable prospects of success.
Your trial barrister can advise whether the sentence is appealable, and that advice should be given shortly after the hearing. If you were unrepresented at sentence, you can apply for legal aid for the appeal itself.
Related Situations
| Situation | Can you appeal | Time limit |
|---|---|---|
| Sentence passed in magistrates' court | Appeal to Crown Court | Twenty-one days from sentence |
| Sentence at Crown Court following guilty plea | Appeal to Court of Appeal with leave | Twenty-eight days from sentence |
| Sentence at Crown Court following conviction after trial | Appeal to Court of Appeal with leave | Twenty-eight days from sentence |
| Breach of suspended sentence order | Appeal against activation to Crown Court | Twenty-one days from activation |
An appeal from the magistrates' court to the Crown Court is a complete rehearing of the sentencing exercise, not a review of the magistrates' decision. The Crown Court can increase the sentence up to the magistrates' maximum power.
Practical Points
Act quickly. The time limit is strict, and an extension is not guaranteed. Obtain a copy of the sentencing remarks from the court as soon as possible; you cannot draft a proper ground without knowing what the judge said.
Be realistic about the prospects. A sentence at the top of the guideline range, properly reasoned, is not appealable simply because you hoped for less. The test is not whether the sentence is harsh, but whether it is wrong.
If you are in custody, the prison will facilitate the process of lodging the notice. If you are on licence or serving a community order, you remain responsible for meeting the deadline.
The conviction appeal process is separate, though you can appeal both conviction and sentence together if you have grounds for each.
Download PDF: Sentence Appeal Checklist PDF, 27 KB
Further reading
Frequently asked questions
Can I appeal a sentence if I pleaded guilty?
Yes. A guilty plea does not remove your right to appeal the sentence, provided you can show it was wrong in law or manifestly excessive.
What happens if my sentence appeal is successful?
The Court of Appeal will either reduce the sentence, substitute a different type of sentence, or send the case back to the Crown Court for a different judge to pass sentence again.
How long does a sentence appeal take?
From lodging the notice to the single judge's decision on leave takes several weeks. If leave is granted, the full hearing is usually listed within a few months, though urgent cases can be expedited.