Lane v The Queen

Criminal law – Appeal against conviction – Application of proviso – Where appellant convicted of manslaughter – Where either of two acts of appellant may have caused death of deceased – Where trial judge erred in failing to direct jury as to requirement that it be unanimous as to specific act causing death – Whether "no substantial miscarriage of justice has actually occurred" – Whether absence of unanimity direction precluded application of proviso.

Words and phrases – "fundamental defect", "nature and effect of the error", "presuppositions of the trial", "proviso", "reasonable doubt", "substantial miscarriage of justice", "unanimity direction", "unanimous".

Criminal Appeal Act 1912 (NSW) – s 6(1).