Lyle Howe, the suspended Halifax lawyer convicted of sexual assault and sentenced to three years in prison, has been released on bail while his appeal is prepared and eventually argued.

The Crown didn't oppose Howe's bail application. His mother and wife posted the sureties for his release.

Howe, a lawyer with a public profile in the city, was found guilty of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman on March 20, 2011. He was found not guilty of administering a stupefying substance when the jury delivered its verdict in May.

He was sentenced at the end of July to three years in prison for his crime.

Throughout the trial, Howe maintained he believed the woman was consenting to the sex, something she denied.

His legal team believes the trial judge should have instructed the jury on the legal concept of mistaken belief in consent.

Howe's lawyers now want to argue that case before Nova Scotia's highest court, the Court of Appeal.