Facts
The Cantonal Court of Schwyz had to decide in a criminal case whether the appeal notification was made in time. The Public Prosecutor's Office of the Canton of Schwyz had filed a complaint in criminal matters. The court of first instance had to examine the admissibility of the appeal and the lawfulness of the appeal notification before transmitting the files to the court of appeal.
The parties were A. and the Public Prosecutor's Office of the Canton of Schwyz. The proceedings were conducted at the I. criminal division of the Federal Court under the number 6B_149/2024. The decision was made on May 14, 2024.
Considerations
The jurisdiction for assessing the timeliness of the appeal notification is governed by Art. 403 para. 1 lit. a CrimPC. According to this provision, the court of appeal is responsible for assessing the timeliness of the appeal notification. This also applies if it depends on the receipt of an appeal notification whether the judgment of the court of first instance is to be justified in writing subsequently.
The court of first instance does not have to examine the admissibility of the appeal and the lawfulness of the appeal notification before transmitting it to the court of appeal. However, it can express its opinion on the validity of the appeal in a covering letter. If the court of first instance is of the opinion that the appeal notification was made late and a written justification of the judgment of the court of first instance is not necessary, it can forward the appeal notification together with a request for dismissal without a written justification of the judgment of the court of first instance to the competent court of appeal.
The court of appeal then has to decide whether the appeal notification is admissible. If the court of appeal considers the appeal notification to be admissible, the judgment of the court…