Lee v R; Tang v R

The appellants, Lee and Tang, appealed against their convictions for various criminal offences. The convictions arose from a case in which they were found guilty by a jury, while a co-accused remained under deliberation. During the jury's continued deliberations, one juror was discharged due to illiteracy and ill-health. The appellants contended that the discharge of this juror, without their presence or consent, rendered their convictions null and void. The appellants argued that they were not 'convicted' within the meaning of the Criminal Appeal Act 1912 (NSW) and that the Court of Criminal Appeal therefore lacked jurisdiction to hear the appeal. The court was required to determine whether the discharge of the juror rendered the convictions invalid, whether the appellants were 'convicted' for the purposes of the appeal, and whether the Court of Criminal Appeal had jurisdiction to hear the appeal.
The court held that the discharge of the juror did not invalidate the convictions as the appellants had not been present or given their consent to the discharge, and the jury had reached a verdict before the discharge. The court held that the appellants were 'convicted' within the meaning of the Criminal Appeal Act 1912 (NSW) as they had been found guilty by the jury. The court further held that the Court of Criminal Appeal had jurisdiction to hear the appeal as the appellants were 'convicted' and the appeal was brought within the required timeframe. The court dismissed the appeal, finding that the discharge of the juror did not render the convictions invalid and that the Court of Criminal Appeal had jurisdiction to hear the appeal.

No further orders were made by the court.