Court of Appeal quashes immediate custodial sentence after sentencing judge had suggested it might be suspended if defendant pleaded guilty
August 25, 2026
In Paula Harriott [2012] EWCA 2294 the issue for the Court of Appeal was whether the Crown Court had power to determine the extent of a beneficial interest in the matrimonial home when the legal title to that property was held by the Appellant. The Crown Court judge had made a confiscation order in the entire amount of the beneficial interest held by the Appellant in the house even though she was married. The Court of Appeal held that the Judges conclusion that without a court order he could not find that the husband had an equitable interest was in our view in error and it quashed the existing order and substituted it for one that reflected the Appellants equitable interest.
A full copy of the judgment can be found below:-
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