Victoria’s Court of Appeal will rule on Friday, October 30, whether Erin Patterson can overturn her triple murder convictions, while prosecutors also seek to tighten the life sentence imposed after the poisoned mushroom lunch that killed three relatives. The outcome could send the case toward a retrial, an acquittal or a harsher term behind bars.

A double appeal before Victoria’s highest court

Three judges will hand down the judgment at 10am AEDT, after hearing arguments in August. Patterson is challenging her convictions, and Victoria’s top prosecutor, Brendan Kissane KC, is separately appealing the sentence.

The Court of Appeal has several paths open. It can refuse leave to appeal, grant leave to appeal but dismiss the appeal, order a retrial, or set the convictions aside and enter acquittals. If the court orders a retrial or acquittal, there would be no need to decide the sentence appeal.

The lunch that became a murder case

Patterson was found guilty in 2025 of murdering Don and Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson, and of attempting to kill Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson. Prosecutors said the meal was served in July 2023 and laced with death cap mushrooms. Ian Wilkinson survived after spending weeks in hospital.

Last year, Patterson was sentenced to life imprisonment with a 33-year non-parole period. That term means she would be eligible for parole in her 80s. If the Crown wins its appeal, she would be resentenced.

What each side says the trial got wrong

Patterson’s lawyers argue the verdict should be overturned because of problems with the jury-sequestration process, errors by the trial judge and what they say was unfair cross-examination by prosecutors. They also say letting jurors stay in the same hotel as police and the prosecution while they deliberated was a catastrophic failure of the justice system.

Patterson has maintained her innocence and testified that she did not intend to poison her lunch guests. The Crown says the 33-year minimum term was too lenient, and Kissane is pushing for life without parole.

What Friday could decide

If Patterson wins either her conviction appeal or the Crown loses its sentence challenge, the legal fight changes sharply. A successful appeal on the convictions could lead to a retrial or acquittal. A successful appeal on the sentence would mean the court sends Patterson back for resentencing.

The court’s ruling will shape whether the case moves closer to a fresh trial, a new sentence or the end of Patterson’s appeals altogether.