The one transaction principle is not an immutable rule; even where charges arise from the same set of facts, the need for proportionality may demand cumulative or partly cumulative terms. A sentencing judge may use a combination of accumulation and concurrency to achieve an effective sentence proportional to overall criminality. Significant differences in co-offenders' circumstances (cooperation with police, role in offending, criminal history) can justify markedly different sentences without giving rise to a justifiable sense of grievance.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 10 later cases that cite this judgment.
7 of the 10 citing cases carry a classified treatment. How each court treated it is available to signed-in members.