The Court of Appeal has reserved its ruling in a landmark case that could, for the first time, establish a sentencing range for murder in cases where the death penalty can no longer be imposed in Trinidad and Tobago.

Justices of Appeal Mark Mohammed, Maria Wilson and Ricky Rahim heard arguments on whether courts should adopt a 30- to 60-year framework for specific intent murder last week.

The appeals were brought by Freyad Edoo and Rawle Ghany, who were convicted in 1999 for the murders of businessman Rajpaul Dass and his sister-in-law, Susan Ramnath. Initially sentenced to death, their punishments were commuted to life in prison under the Pratt and Morgan precedent, which limits the time prisoners can remain on death row.