Article 9 Amendments to the Criminal Procedure Rules 2005I1

in the table of contents, in the second column—

in the table of contents—

after rule 37.5 (Notice of intention to cite previous convictions), insert—

“Application to change a plea of guilty

37.6

(1)

The defendant must apply as soon as practicable after becoming aware of the grounds for making an application to change a plea of guilty, and may only do so before the final disposal of the case, by sentence or otherwise.

(2)

Unless the court otherwise directs, the application must be in writing and it must—

(a)

set out the reasons why it would be unjust for the guilty plea to remain unchanged;

(b)

indicate what, if any, evidence the defendant wishes to call;

(c)

identify any proposed witness; and

(d)

indicate whether legal professional privilege is waived, specifying any material name and date.

(3)

The defendant must serve the written application on—

(a)

the court officer; and

(b)

the prosecutor.”;

Renumber rule 37.6 (Preservation of depositions where offence triable either way is dealt with summarily) as rule 37.7; and

Renumber rule 37.7 (Order of evidence and speeches: complaint) as rule 37.8.