The Concentrate Questions and Answers series offers the best preparation for tackling exam questions. Each book includes typical questions, bullet-pointed answer plans and suggested answers, author commentary and illustrative diagrams and flow charts. This chapter discusses the allocation of the burden of proof in civil and criminal trials, depending on who should bear the risk. In criminal trials the ‘presumption of innocence’ means that the burden is on the prosecution, unless reversed by express or implied statutory provision. The law of evidence safeguards what in some jurisdictions is a civil right backed by the constitution. It is important to understand the difference between the legal and evidential burden and the occasions where they are separately allocated. Tricky areas are where there is a divorce of the legal and evidential burden, primarily in situations where the prosecution cannot expect to put up evidence to anticipate every specific defence the accused may present.
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Chapter
2. Burden and standard of proof: Presumptions
Chapter
2. Burden of proof
This chapter focuses on the burden of proof and presumption of innocence in criminal and civil cases under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). It considers the influence of the UK’s Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) on the allocation of the burden of proof and compares legal/persuasive burden of proof with the evidential burden. It contains a detailed examSination of the case law under this Act and the criteria developed to assess where reverse burdens should apply. It draws on academic commentary in making this analysis. It also looks at situations where the legal and the evidential burden may be split. The leading cases on the standard of proof in civil cases are reviewed.
Chapter
4. Character
The Concentrate Questions and Answers series offers the best preparation for tackling exam questions. Each book includes typical questions, bullet-pointed answer plans and suggested answers, author commentary and diagrams and flow charts. This chapter concerns a complex question in criminal evidence: situations where defendants may adduce evidence of good character to suggest lack of guilt and support credibility, and those where prosecution counsel or counsel for the co-defendant may cross-examine them on previous ‘reprehensible’ behaviour. The exclusionary rule was fundamental to the English legal system and founded on the principle that the defendant should have a fair trial. The Criminal Justice Act (CJA) 2003 made comprehensive changes to the rules of admissibility of evidence of bad character of the defendant and witnesses providing that ‘the common law rules governing the admissibility of evidence of bad character in criminal proceedings are abolished’. There is now a presumption of admissibility of that evidence.
Chapter
5. Character evidence
This chapter, which focuses on the admissibility and evidential worth of character evidence, explains the definition of bad character under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (CJA). It examines how bad character evidence of the defendant may be admitted through one of the ‘gateways’ under the Act. It reviews the evidential worth of the character evidence if admitted and explains the difference between propensity and credibility. The law on the admissibility of the bad character of non-defendant witnesses is explained and the reasons for a more protective stance highlighted. The chapter concludes with a review of the admissibility of good character evidence, governed by the common law.
Chapter
7. Competence, compellability, and special measures
This chapter focuses on the competence and compellability of witnesses in criminal and, in outline, in civil trials. It explains the main criminal law exceptions in relation to competence and universal compellability. It gives details on the complex and controversial position under s80 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984. The chapter outlines the special measures directions (SMDs) available under the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act (YJCAE) 1999 for vulnerable non-defendant witnesses in criminal trials. The more limited measures for vulnerable defendants are outlined, in particular the use of intermediaries. The chapter concludes with an outline of the Criminal Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Act 2008.
Book
Maureen Spencer and John Spencer
The Concentrate Questions and Answers series offers the best preparation for tackling exam questions and coursework. Each book includes typical questions, bullet-pointed answer plans and suggested answers, author commentary and illustrative diagrams and flow charts. Concentrate Q&A Evidence offers expert advice on what to expect from your Evidence exam, how best to prepare and guidance on what examiners are really looking for. Written by experienced examiners, it provides clear commentary with each question and answer and bullet points and diagram answer plans plus tips to make your answer really stand out from the crowd and further reading suggestions at the end of every chapter. The book should help the reader identify typical law exam questions, structure a first-class answer, avoid common mistakes, show the examiner what the reader knows and find relevant further reading. After an introduction, the book covers burden and standard of proof, presumptions, competence and compellability, Special Measures Directions, character evidence, hearsay, confessions, the defendant’s silence, improperly obtained evidence, supporting evidence, identification expert opinion, issues in the course of trial, privilege, public policy and mixed questions. The final chapter gives guidance on assessed coursework. The book is suitable for undergraduate law students taking optional modules in Evidence.
Chapter
3. Confessions, and the defendant’s pre-trial silence
This chapter focuses on confessions and on the defendant’s pre-trial silence. It explains how a defendant may be convicted on the evidence of a confession alone. It analyses the definition of a confession as specified in s82(1) of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE), and how a confession proffered by the prosecution or by a co-defendant may be excluded by rule under PACE. The chapter also considers the preservation of the common law discretion to exclude confession evidence as well as the procedure for police interrogation of suspects under PACE. It examines recent case law on the significance of lack of access to legal advice of a suspect under interrogation. It concludes with an examination of how the jury at trial may draw an inference of guilt under ss34, 36, and 37 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (CJPO), sections which have eroded the right to silence. The influence of the Strasbourg jurisprudence in this area is outlined.
Chapter
6. Confessions, the defendant’s silence, and improperly obtained evidence
The Concentrate Questions and Answers series offers the best preparation for tackling exam questions. Each book includes typical questions, bullet-pointed answer plans and suggested answers, author commentary and diagrams and flow charts. This chapter covers three areas: confessions, silence of the accused and judicial discretion to exclude improperly obtained prosecution evidence. It explains how the most persuasive, sometimes only, evidence available to the prosecution is a pre-trial confession. While confessions have long been accepted as evidence of guilt, they have also posed risks of unreliability and violation of individual autonomy. Defendants may not be making a true confession or may have been obtained as a result of pressure. Permissible inferences from a pre-trial failure to respond to questions has the crucial difference that such failure alone cannot found a conviction. English law has previously been unwilling to acknowledge the case for excluding evidence which involves the police acting improperly or even illegally.
Book
Maureen Spencer and John Spencer
Each Concentrate revision guide is packed with essential information, key cases, revision tips, exam Q&As, and more. Concentrates show you what to expect in a law exam, what examiners are looking for, and how to achieve extra marks. Evidence Concentrate is supported by extensive online resources to take your learning further. Written by experts, it covers all the key topics so you can approach your exams with confidence. The clear, succinct coverage enables you to quickly grasp the fundamental principles of this area of law and helps you succeed in exams. This guide has been rigorously reviewed and is endorsed by students and lecturers for level of coverage, accuracy, and exam advice. It is clear, concise, and easy to use, helping you get the most out of your revision. After an introduction, the book covers principles and key concepts; burden of proof; confessions and the defendant’s silence; improperly obtained evidence, other than confessions; character evidence; hearsay evidence; competence and compellability, special measures; identification evidence and questioning at trial; opinion evidence; public interest immunity; and privilege.
Chapter
1. Exam skills for success in evidence
The Concentrate Questions and Answers series offers the best preparation for tackling exam questions. Each book includes typical questions, bullet-pointed answer plans and suggested answers, author commentary and illustrative diagrams and flow charts. This book is a supplementary aid to coursework preparation and particularly to revision for examinations and coursework. It does not present model answers to be slavishly imitated but, rather, examples to help the student understand the topic and see how it might be approached. The examinee’s objective is to accumulate in the time allowed as many marks as possible, a goal that needs to be broken down into three stages: namely, planning, execution and review. These days law examinations can take different forms, including seen questions, open book exams and so on. To take account of this, the book includes essay answers that are closer to more fully researched pieces than to the answers in a traditional unseen examination.
Chapter
9. Examination and cross-examination
The Concentrate Questions and Answers series offers the best preparation for tackling exam questions. Each book includes typical questions, bullet-pointed answer plans and suggested answers, author commentary and illustrative diagrams and flow charts. This chapter deals with the type of questions that can or cannot be asked in examination-in-chief or cross-examination in criminal trials. This area overlaps considerably with criminal procedure, and Evidence courses vary in the topics they cover. The chapter covers refreshing of memory, rules on previous consistent statements and exceptions, and hostile witnesses in respect of examinations-in-chief. In respect of cross-examination, it covers rules on previous inconsistent statements, finality to answers to collateral questions and exceptions, the special rule for cross-examination of complainants in sexual offence cases and non-defendant’s bad character.
Chapter
5. Hearsay
The Concentrate Questions and Answers series offers the best preparation for tackling exam questions. Each book includes typical questions, bullet-pointed answer plans and suggested answers, author commentary and illustrative diagrams and flow charts. This chapter focuses on the rule against hearsay, which is, historically, one of the great exclusionary rules underlying the law of evidence. In 1997 the Law Commission recommended that hearsay evidence be put on a clearer statutory footing in criminal trials. This eventually led to wholesale reform in the Criminal Justice Act (CJA) 2003, which preserves the rule but increases the number of exceptions and safeguards, providing a comprehensive regime for hearsay. The chapter provides an overview of the changes to hearsay introduced by the CJA 2003.
Chapter
6. Hearsay evidence
This chapter, which focuses on hearsay evidence and its relationship to confessions, first considers the rule against hearsay and its application to out-of-court statements of witnesses in civil and criminal cases. It then looks at statements, both oral and written, and gestures, as well as the admissibility of hearsay in criminal proceedings under the Criminal Justice Act (CJA) 2003 and, in outline, in civil proceedings under the Civil Evidence Act (CEA) 1995. The survival of some common law rules on hearsay is discussed. The chapter also explains the legal distinction between first-hand (what X told Y) and multiple hearsay (what X told Y who told Z). It concludes by discussing the landmark decisions under Art 6(3)(d) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
Chapter
8. Identification, care warnings, and questioning at trial
This chapter examines a number of procedural matters in criminal trials. It first explains suspect evidence and the erosion of the rules on corroboration under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act (CJPOA)1994. It then concentrates in some detail on identification evidence concerned with the Turnbull directions and the provisions of Code D Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984. The extent to which the defendant’s lies may constitute evidence of guilt is explained, along with a review of Lucas directions. It continues with a review of the various procedural aspects of examination and cross-examination. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the rules on cross-examination of complainants in sexual cases on their previous sexual history along with the case law under s41 Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act (YJCEA)1999.
Chapter
4. Improperly obtained evidence other than confessions
This chapter focuses on prosecution evidence that is relevant but improperly obtained and consequently may be excluded by judicial discretion. It looks at the exclusionary discretion contained within s78 of the UK’s Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) and explains how common law and statutory exclusionary discretion may be exercised in relation to other areas of evidence, such as character evidence and hearsay evidence, as well as confessions. The chapter also looks at the most common areas of exclusion, other than confession evidence, including breach or evasion of legislation such as PACE and the Codes of Practice. Police undercover activity is examined. Consideration is given to when a stay of prosecution might be the appropriate procedure. Finally, it discusses the relevant principles of Art 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) that are enshrined in s78 of PACE.
Chapter
1. Introduction, principles, and key concepts
This chapter introduces the principles and key concepts underlying the law of evidence, with an emphasis on criminal evidence. It reviews Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), now part of English law as a result of the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA). It points to factors which are reducing adversarialism in English criminal trials. The risks, along with the advantages, of the increasing use of computer technology in presenting evidence, are illustrated by reference to the wrongful prosecutions of hundreds of Post Office counter staff for dishonesty offences. The chapter concludes by highlighting the importance of analysis of the relevance of the facts in a trial.
Chapter
11. Mixed topic questions
The Concentrate Questions and Answers series offers the best preparation for tackling exam questions. Each book includes typical questions, bullet-pointed answer plans and suggested answers, author commentary and diagrams and flow charts. This chapter describes how examination questions frequently cover several issues. It is impossible to cover each area in the same depth as single-issue questions so it is important to take time listing matters that raise points of law, then specifying the appropriate statute or case law, and finally applying the law to the given facts. A well-crafted question will not contain redundant information, so be prepared to comment on all parts of it. These questions do not ask for an evaluation or criticism of the law as it is, but for identification of legal issues in the narrative given and application of the law to each. It may be appropriate to refer to academic commentary, particularly in new areas of law.
Chapter
8. Opinion evidence
The Concentrate Questions and Answers series offers the best preparation for tackling exam questions. Each book includes typical questions, bullet-pointed answer plans and suggested answers, author commentary and diagrams and flow charts. This chapter explores an area of evidence law dominated by expert witness evidence and the extent to which flawed testimony leads to miscarriages of justice. Expert evidence is now commonplace in criminal and civil trials, and the courts and Parliament have developed procedures to ensure that it is of high quality. These are an eclectic mix of common law and statute and their development reflects the importance of scientific expertise. It is necessary to be familiar with the differences between expert and non-expert opinion evidence and on when and in what circumstances both types are admissible and questions that can be asked of the expert whilst giving evidence. The approach depends on whether the question relates to civil or criminal trials
Chapter
9. Opinion evidence
This chapter, which focuses on opinion evidence in criminal and civil cases in the UK, explains the rule on the admissibility of opinion evidence, largely expert opinion. The notice and disclosure rules in criminal cases under the Criminal Procedure Rules (CPR) are outlined. The criteria for the admissibility of expert evidence, the responsibilities of expert witnesses, and the approach of the courts to new areas of expertise are examined in detail. It also considers the presentation of expert evidence, including the use of court-appointed experts, in civil cases under the CPR, and, finally, examines the ultimate issue rule, which has been abolished by s33(1) of the Civil Evidence Act (CEA) 1972.
Chapter
11. Privilege
This chapter looks at the rules relating to legal professional privilege and, in outline, the doctrine of the privilege against self-incrimination. Under these provisions potentially relevant evidence may be excluded at trial. The role of legal professional privilege in protecting defendants in criminal trials is outlined and the absolutist stance of the courts discussed. The chapter outlines the various immunities which are embraced under the privilege against self-incrimination. Summarizing some recent case law, the chapter reflects on the extent to which the privilege may now extend to a broader set of circumstances than the earlier authorities suggested. For example, the privilege may not necessarily be unavailable against the use of compelled questions in an administrative enquiry.
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