judgment in R v A (No 2)

E640905

The judgment in R v A (No 2) is a leading House of Lords decision on the admissibility of a complainant’s sexual history evidence in rape trials and the impact of the Human Rights Act 1998 on such evidential rules.

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Statements (44)

Predicate Object
instanceOf House of Lords case
United Kingdom criminal law case
evidence law case
judicial decision
leading authority
rape law case
alsoKnownAs R v A (No 2) NERFINISHED
appliesStatute Human Rights Act 1998 NERFINISHED
Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 NERFINISHED
concernsAreaOfLaw criminal evidence
human rights law
rape law
statutory interpretation
concernsProvision Article 3 European Convention on Human Rights NERFINISHED
Article 6 European Convention on Human Rights NERFINISHED
Article 8 European Convention on Human Rights NERFINISHED
section 3 Human Rights Act 1998
section 41 Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999
country United Kingdom
effectOnLaw expanded judicial discretion to admit relevant sexual history evidence
strengthened use of section 3 HRA 1998 to read legislation compatibly with Convention rights
hasCourt House of Lords NERFINISHED
hasJurisdiction England and Wales NERFINISHED
holds a declaration of incompatibility should be avoided if a conforming interpretation is possible
courts must interpret section 41 YJCEA 1999 compatibly with Article 6 ECHR where possible
evidence of a complainant’s prior sexual relationship with the defendant may be admissible where necessary for a fair trial
section 3 HRA 1998 requires strong interpretative obligations on courts
involvesRight protection of victims of sexual offences
right to a fair trial
right to respect for private life
isLeadingCaseOn fair trial rights in sexual offence prosecutions
rape shield provisions in English law
section 3 Human Rights Act 1998
language English
legalIssue admissibility of complainant’s sexual history evidence
compatibility of rape shield provisions with fair trial rights
interpretation of section 41 YJCEA 1999 under section 3 HRA 1998
scope of judicial discretion to admit otherwise excluded evidence
party A NERFINISHED
R NERFINISHED
subjectMatter criminal prosecution
rape trial
usedAsAuthorityIn later rape and sexual offence trials on evidential issues
subsequent UK human rights jurisprudence

Referenced by (1)

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Lord Steyn notableWork judgment in R v A (No 2)