A DOUBLE murder accused is set to front a hearing next month, after the court heard new evidence had not drastically changed the course of the case.
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Richard George Sands appeared via video link from Long Bay jail in the Supreme Court of NSW in Sydney on Friday.
Sands is accused of sparking an early morning housefire in Tamworth almost two years ago, which killed a woman and child.
The case had been adjourned twice for Crown prosecutors to consider fresh material that crossed their desks last month.
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After the Crown told the court it was still seeking a hearing date, Justice Robert Hulme asked if the issue raised on those occasions had "somehow resolved itself".
Solicitor Cat McKay from the state prosecuting authority, the DPP, told the court the further evidence had been obtained during the past few weeks.
Justice Hulme agreed to set a hearing date in mid-October.
The court heard the proceedings could take less than a day because the relevant issues in the case had largely been agreed on.
Defence barrister Stuart Bouveng said the parties could almost put together a "joint position".
Sands was not arraigned during the mention, meaning he did not formally enter pleas to allegations including two counts each of murder and attempted murder, after Mr Bouveng said there "may be" an issue.
Sands was arrested in the hours after the fatal housefire, which ripped through a Hillvue home before dawn on October 17, 2019.
Two others were also injured in the blaze. Some details of the case cannot be reported for legal reasons.
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