5. =Court of Criminal Appeal.=--This was established in 1908, and
consists of three judges. A right of appeal may be based (1) solely on a
question of law; (2) on certificate from the judge who tried the
prisoner; (3) on mitigation of sentence.
Speaking generally, in the Superior Courts the fees which may be claimed
by medical men called on to give evidence are a guinea a day if resident
in the town in which the case is tried, and from two to three guineas a
day if resident at a distance from the place of trial, this to include
everything except travelling expenses. The medical witness also receives
a reasonable allowance for hotel and travelling expenses.
If a witness is summoned to appear before two courts at the same time,
he must obey the summons of the higher court. Criminal cases take
precedence of civil.
A medical man has no right to claim privilege as an excuse for not
divulging professional secrets in a court of law, and the less he talks
about professional etiquette the better. Still, in a civil case, if he
were to make an emphatic protest, the matter in all probability would
not be pressed. In a criminal case he would promptly be reminded of the
nature of his oath.
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