Making An Application
Scottish Criminal Cases Review
Phone: 0141 270 7030           Email: info@sccrc.org.uk
Making an Application
The flowchart below set out what we will look at in deciding whether or not to accept an application for review and what questions we need to consider in deciding if a miscarriage of justice may have occurred and that it’s in the interest of justice to make a referral.

You can download a copy of our application form here.

Will the Commission accept an
application?

Does the application relate to a criminal conviction in Scotland or a sentence imposed as a result of such a conviction, or both?
No
The   application   is   not competent and will not be accepted for review.
Does the application set out one or more stateable grounds of review?
No
The application will not be accepted for review.
Where the applicant has applied to the Commission before, does the application raise any substantially new matters?
No
The application is unlikely to be accepted for a further review of the same matters.

Has the applicant applied for leave to appeal his or her case (or an application for an extension of time in which to do so)?
No
The application is premature and is unlikely to be accepted for a review unless there are exceptional circumstances (e.g. the applicant was prevented from appealing because serious threats were made against him or his family, or it is only our special powers of investigation that can uncover the evidence needed).
Where the grounds of review are the same as the appeal grounds, does the application provide good reasons for disagreeing with the appeal process?
No
The   Board   is   unlikely  to      accept    an application     where    such     an     explanation  is      not        provided.


The Board will consider all of the above points in deciding whether it is in the interest of justice to accept the application.
Yes
The application is valid and we will accept it for review.
Yes
Case Review
A legal officer, the Chief Executive and two or three Board Members examine the issues raised in the application, and any other issues they consider to be relevant – we are not restricted to examining only those issues raised in the application. The legal officer carries out the day-to-day investigation in the case, but will meet with the Chief Executive and the Board Members regularly, normally each month, to discuss the progress of the review.
Yes
Yes

Decision:

After the review process is completed, the Commission’s Board will decide whether to refer the case to the High Court or not by considering the following:
  • Are there grounds to refer the case to the High Court?
Yes
We issue a statement of reasons to the High Court which sets out why we believe that a miscarriage of justice may have occurred and it’s in the interests of justice to refer the case. We send copies of the statement of reasons to the applicant, their solicitor, the Lord Advocate and the Crown Agent. We issue a short press release in which we say we are referring the case to the High Court. 

We then close the case.
Yes
We send the applicant and their solicitor a statement of reasons setting out why we believe that the statutory test has not been met.
Yes

Response to the decision

The applicant is given a period of 28 days in which to consider the decision and to make further submissions where they disagree with the initial decision and it is appropriate to do so.
  • Were further submissions lodged within the 28 day period?
No
We send the applicant and their solicitor a statement of reasons setting out why we believe that the statutory test has not been met.
Yes
We consider the further submissions and carry out any investigations we consider are necessary. The Board of the SCCRC decides whether to refer the case to the High Court.

  • Are there grounds to refer the case to the High Court?
No
We send the applicant and his solicitor a supplementary statement of reasons setting out why we believe that our statutory test has not been met. 

We close the case.
Yes
Yes
We issue a statement of reasons to the High Court which sets out why we believe that a miscarriage of justice may have occurred and it’s in the interests of justice to refer the case. We send copies of the statement of reasons to the applicant, their solicitor, the Lord Advocate and the Crown Agent. We issue a short press release in which we say we are referring the case to the High Court.

We then close the case.

If you would like to submit an application for a review of your conviction, sentence or both, you can download a copy of our application form here.

Additional guidance for applicants and representatives on making submissions to the Commission is also available here.

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