Legal Definitions - Court for Consideration of Crown Cases Reserved

The Court for Consideration of Crown Cases Reserved was a court established in 1848 to review questions of law arising in criminal cases. Its purpose was to decide whether an error had been committed in a trial judge's post-verdict questions of law.

For example, if a judge had doubts about the law in a criminal case, they could respite judgment or sentence and discuss the matter informally with other judges. If they thought that the prisoner had been improperly convicted, the prisoner was pardoned.

All the judges were members of this court, and five, of whom the Lord Chief Justice must be one, formed a quorum. However, the Court was abolished in 1907, and its jurisdiction was transferred to the Court of Criminal Appeal.

Overall, the Court for Consideration of Crown Cases Reserved was an important part of the English legal system, as it ensured that justice was served and that errors in criminal cases were corrected.