A mother-of-two convicted of stealing £33,700 from her uncle’s law firm has lost her appeal against her 20-month jail-term.

Fenella Carter, 32, admitted taking the money while book keeping for her uncle Jerry Carter’s legal practice. It went on funding the purchase of a horse box.

Her lawyer Roger Kane pointed out that the stolen money had all been repaid and the appropriate sentence should have been a community service order of 240 hours as the appellant was of previous good character and was the principal carer of two young children.

He said judge Deemster Rosen had failed to consider adequately a suspended sentence and had also not properly taken into account the human rights of Miss Carter and her twin sons.

And he argued that if an immediate custodial sentence had to be imposed then the appropriate term should have been 16 to 18 months.

But the appeal court ruled that her 20-month jail term was not manifestly excessive and was within the range of appropriate sentences.

In their judgment, judge of appeal Geoffrey Tattersall QC and First Deemster David Doyle said: ’In reaching such conclusion we have had particular regard to the Article 8 rights of both the Appellant and her young children and we accept that the appellant will find it difficult that she cannot at this time provide for the needs of her children.

’However that is her fault and that of no one else.’

And they added: ’We can but hope that the dismissal of this appeal will serve as a warning to others who are in positions of trust and may be tempted to steal from their employers.

’It should be recognised that immediate custodial sentences will be imposed in appropriate cases.’

The appeal court heard that Miss Carter, of Christian Avenue, Peel, had initially been charged with stealing a total of £69,907.

She had told her uncle she had been ’very naughty’.

Prosecutor Rachael Braidwood submitted that the offences constituted an extreme breach of trust which had a very serious effect on both the company and Mr Carter.

Misappropriation of funds from the company’s client account had resulted in a formal notice of intervention from the Isle of Man Law Society in September 2013, the freezing of all the business accounts and the closing of the company’s practice, although the notice was rescinded some two weeks later.

The Advocates Disciplinary Tribunal determined that Mr Carter had failed to supervise the appellant, and he was fined £4,000 and ordered to pay costs of £16,000. His health had suffered as a result.

Mr Carter was praised for the measured way he had dealt with matters, particularly given the difficult family context, expressing both empathy for Miss Carter’s parents and the need to ’draw a line in the sand’ to avoid any further unpleasantness.