The Court of Criminal Appeal has dismissed an attempt by Bruce Burrell to have his conviction overturned for the 1997 kidnap and murder of Sydney woman Kerry Whelan.

39-year-old Kerry Whelan disappeared in 1997 from outside a Parramatta Hotel and her body has never been found.

Bruce Burrell was convicted in 2006 of the crime.

Today Burrell’s appeal was dismissed, with the court saying his crime was clearly a premeditated and planned murder for financial gain.

This is the third time the Court of Criminal Appeal has handed down a decision on this matter.

The court re-opened the appeal after an error in the judgement, but upheld its original decision.

It was then ordered by the High Court in 2008 to consider Bruce Burrell’s appeal again.