A Practical Guide to Bad Character Evidence for Criminal Practitioners

Designed to cover each stage of the process, from identifying bad character, getting it past the gateways, and directing the jury on its use, ‘A Practical Guide to Bad Character Evidence’ is your one-stop reference text when prosecuting and defending criminal trials in England and Wales. It separates the theory from the reality, providing examples and common-sense guidance on the scope and limitations of the use of bad character evidence. Since bad character evidence pervades the trial process, sometimes in unexpected ways, it is vital that practitioners have an understanding of the up-to-date legal position and how it works in practice. Each chapter focuses on a different stage or concept, breaking down the legislative tests and distilling the key cases in a clear and structured way. Chapters contain handy sub-headings to facilitate quick lookup, and the user is guided to other relevant headings and cases that will assist. There is also an index of cases to help with ready navigation. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Dr Aparna Rao is an established criminal barrister at 5 Paper Buildings, London, specialising in complex criminal and civil fraud. Aparna took her undergraduate degrees in Law and Science at the Australian National University in Canberra, before qualifying as a lawyer in 2009 and working as an Associate to a Justice of the High Court of Australia (the final appellate court in Australia, the equivalent of the UK Supreme Court). She taught as a Lecturer in Law at the Australian National University, and later tutored in Law at Oxford University while completing her Doctorate in Law. Her thesis focused on the bad character of the defendant in criminal trials. In 2013, Aparna cross-qualified and was called to the Bar of England and Wales. Aparna is frequently sought as counsel in large-scale operations involving financial, technical, or legally-complex matters. She is instructed as junior counsel in MTIC and fraud-related proceedings in the VAT Tribunal. She has been instructed by government bodies to advise on LIBOR, inquiries and Serious Fraud Office investigations, and has recently completed several large-scale operations concerning internet piracy and conspiracy to defraud. Aparna has also worked extensively on high-profile historic sex offences, drugs conspiracies, extradition, and disciplinary and regulatory work in the healthcare sector. CONTENTS Chapter 1 – Introduction Chapter 2 – What Is Bad Character Evidence Chapter 3 – Section 100 Non-Defendant Bad Character Chapter 4 – Section 101 Defendant Bad Character Chapter 5 – Exclusions Chapter 6 – Jury Directions and Standard of Proof Chapter 7 – Conclusion