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Don't Mention the War: The C ourt of A ppeal, the C riminal C ases R eview C ommission and Dealing with the Past in N orthern I reland
Author(s) -
Quirk Hannah
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the modern law review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.37
H-Index - 22
eISSN - 1468-2230
pISSN - 0026-7961
DOI - 10.1111/1468-2230.12044
Subject(s) - appeal , scholarship , commission , transitional justice , political science , law , criminology , criminal justice , economic justice , state (computer science) , sociology , algorithm , computer science
Despite the vast transitional justice scholarship relating to prisoner release, amnesties and prosecutions when conflicts end, there is a significant gap in practice and academic literature regarding wrongful convictions. Uniquely amongst post‐conflict societies, N orthern I reland has a body for investigating miscarriages of justice, albeit one designed for ‘ordinary’ appeals. In the absence of a formal truth‐recovery process, criminal appeals are becoming a proxy for addressing the role of the state during ‘The T roubles,’ as well as remedying individual injustices. This article examines the approach of the N orthern I reland C ourt of A ppeal during the conflict. It charts the developments in its decision‐making following the cease‐fires and the establishment of the C riminal C ases R eview C ommission. It concludes that the current system is unsatisfactory as it ignores the effects of the conflict on the appeal process and offers no insights into the role of the C ourt during the conflict. Alternative models are suggested.