Criminal Justice Act 2003, section 273

Life prisoners transferred to England and Wales

Part 12 Sentencing

(1)The Secretary of State must refer the case of any transferred life prisoner to the High Court for the making of one or more relevant orders.

(2) In subsection (1) “transferred life prisoner” means a person -

(a)on whom a court in a country or territory outside the British Islands has imposed one or more sentences of imprisonment or detention for an indeterminate period, and

(b)who has been transferred to England and Wales after the commencement of this section in pursuance of—

(i)an order made by the Secretary of State under section 2 of the Colonial Prisoners Removal Act 1884 (c. 31), or

(ii)a warrant issued by the Secretary of State under the Repatriation of Prisoners Act 1984 (c. 47),

there to serve his sentence or sentences or the remainder of his sentence or sentences.

(3) In subsection (1) “a relevant order” means [F628 a minimum term order or a whole life order under section 321 of the Sentencing Code F628] .

(4) In section 34(1) of the Crime (Sentences) Act 1997 (c. 43) (meaning of “life prisoner” in Chapter 2 of Part 2 of that Act ) at the end there is inserted “and includes a transferred life prisoner as defined by section 273 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003” .

[F629 (5)The reference in subsection (2)(b) above to a person who has been transferred to England and Wales in pursuance of a warrant issued under the Repatriation of Prisoners Act 1984 includes a reference to a person who is detained in England and Wales in pursuance of a warrant under section 4A of that Act (warrant transferring responsibility for detention and release of offender).F629]

Definitions used in section 273 2

court

“court” (without more), except in Chapter 7, does not include a service court , but this does not apply where a contrary intention appears from any provision of the Armed Forces Act 2006 ;

Defined in s.305(1) · see it in the full Act
the court

(2) In relation to such an application or reference, any reference to “the court” in section 269(2) to (5) and Schedule 21 is to be read as a reference to the High Court.

Defined in Sch.22 para.11(2) · see it in the full Act

Cases considering section 273 15

Hull v R.

[2011] EWCA Crim 1261 · 19 May 2011

Section 273 required the transferred life prisoner’s case to be referred to the High Court for the relevant minimum-term order. Article 10.2 authorised that English statutory process as an adaptation of the Irish sentence (see paras [18]; [42]). Section 273(1) required the Secretary of State to refer the case to the High Court. The court treated the referral as a lawful part of adapting the sentence under Article 10.2 (see para [42]). Section 273(3) identified the relevant order for an offence which would carry a mandatory life sentence in England and Wales. It directed the court to the minimum-term machinery in section 269 (see paras [18]-[19]; [42]).

Christopher Adolphus Forbes, Re

[2025] EWHC 1692 (Admin) · 17 July 2025

Applies the statutory reference procedure requiring the Secretary of State to refer a transferred life prisoner to the High Court for a minimum term order or whole life order. (see paras [1]; [13]; [29])

Logan Jackson, Re

[2024] EWHC 1557 (Admin) · 28 June 2024

Applies the statutory reference procedure requiring the Secretary of State to refer a transferred life prisoner to the High Court for a minimum-term or whole-life order.

What each judgment says about section 273 is in the case-law panel in the full Act.

Explanatory note

618.The need to provide for judicial determination of minimum terms in mandatory life sentences affects not only those convicted here but also the small number of prisoners who have been convicted in jurisdictions outside the British Islands (i.e. the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man) and who consent to be transferred to England and Wales in order to serve their sentence here. Section 273 provides for the cases of these transferred life sentence prisoners to be referred to the High Court for a minimum term to be fixed. section 274 contains further provisions about references under section 273, including provision for appeals.

All the explanatory notes for the Act

Amendments and notes

2 notes from legislation.gov.uk

Amendments

  1. F628Words in s. 273(3) substituted for s. 273(3)(a)(b) (1.12.2020) by Sentencing Act 2020 (c. 17), s. 416(1), Sch. 24 para. 239 (with Sch. 27); S.I. 2020/1236, reg. 2
  2. F629S. 273(5) inserted (14.7.2008) by Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 (c. 4), ss. 148, 153, Sch. 26 para. 73; S.I. 2008/1586, art. 2(1), Sch. 1 para. 48(a)