Where psychiatric evidence first emerges at sentencing or on appeal raising a question of the accused's unfitness to be tried — particularly where the accused lacks insight into a mental illness and was therefore unable to instruct counsel on a possible mental state defence — the conviction should be quashed and a new trial ordered unless the appellate court is satisfied the accused would have been found fit had the question been raised at trial. The fact that the accused may be fit at a retrial is irrelevant to the appellate court's determination.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 3 later cases that cite this judgment.