Judgement — Sections 353 to 365

The verdict in a high-profile case is always announced on a particular day, and news channels wait outside the court for it. But what exactly must a judge do that day? Read out everything, or only the last page? Can a judge who has signed a judgment change his mind the next morning? And when a person has been wronged by the offence, does the verdict do anything for them beyond punishing the accused? The judgment chapter of the procedure code answers all three.

In two minutes

A judgment in a criminal trial must be pronounced in open court within forty-five days of the end of the trial, must state the points for decision and the reasons, can be altered once signed only to correct a clerical or arithmetical error, and may carry compensation for the victim or release on probation instead of punishment.

The rest of this chapter

The full explanation, the cheat sheet, every previous-year question at every mark weight, the quiz and the answer skeletons are part of Criminal Procedure Code 1973, Juvenile Justice Act 2015 and POCSO Act 2012 on LexBlox Semester. Sign in to unlock the subject, or read Module 1 of Legal Language and Writing free.