‘A Practical Guide to Bad Character Evidence for Criminal Practitioners – Second Edition’ by Aparna Rao

Description

The second edition of ‘A Practical Guide to Bad Character Evidence’ is an essential resource for criminal law practitioners in England and Wales. This comprehensive text walks you through every stage of handling bad character evidence – from identifying it, getting it past the gateways, to directing the jury on its use. The author has distilled common-sense guidance from a vast number of cases on the scope and limitations of the use of bad character evidence. It is a one-stop reference text for advocates and judges in the criminal courts.

Since bad character evidence pervades the trial process, sometimes in unexpected ways, it is vital to 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 categorising the key cases in a clear and structured way. Chapters contain handy sub-headings to facilitate quick lookup, plus cross-references to other subjects and cases. Alongside principles you will find references to cases that show the application of the principle in factual scenarios. This new edition also contains a checklist that walks you through the steps for dealing with possible bad character evidence. There is also an extensive index of cases to help with ready navigation.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr Aparna Rao is a distinguished criminal barrister at 5 Paper Buildings, London, specialising in complex criminal and civil fraud. She is known for her adept handling of intricate legal matters, often involving financial, technical, or evidentially complex issues. She combines this to great effect with her straightforward and incisive manner which inspires confidence in clients and courts. Her expertise and flair makes her a sought-after junior in large fraud cases.

Her impressive academic credentials include undergraduate degrees in Law and Science at the Australian National University in Canberra. She then qualified as a lawyer in 2009 and worked 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 doctoral 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 has a very successful practice defending in disciplinary and regulatory proceedings in the healthcare and policing sectors. She is instructed in MTIC and fraud-related proceedings in the VAT Tribunal. She sits as a part-time judge in the Employment Tribunal and the First-tier Tribunal.

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