R v Evans: An Uneasy Precedent?

Abstract

In this piece, I discuss the recent case of R v Evans, in which the Court of Appeal allowed the defence to adduce evidence regarding the complainants’ sexual history with third parties in the context of a rape trial. I will assess the academic debate surrounding the controversy the case brought through the expansion of s 41(3)(c) of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 to allow such evidence to be adduced. As such expansion has been criticised on the basis that it has created a tension between the complainant’s right to privacy and the defendant’s right to a fair trial, I will outline the criticism of Evans by various academics, addressing whether these criticisms are sound, and put forward my ideas regarding how the problems of Evans can be resolved (i.e. through a cultural change, as opposed to legislative change).