By Sheila Mckenzie-
Online sexual consent courses are going to be compulsory fora family judges in a remarkable shake up designed to avoid misinformed judgements.
The new development comes after a family judge shamefully suggested that a female had consented to sex because she did not fighting her attacker. The courses which will take the form of online resources for family judges will elaborately focus on consent and stereotypes in sexual cases is being developed.
Lady Justice Rafferty,(pictured) chairman of the Judicial College, has been appointed by the judiciary to have oversight of the preparation of an online resource for family judges focusing on consent and stereotypes. Known for her extra judicial advice, Lady Rafferty will also ensure induction and refresher courses for judges are updated to ensure these topics are fully covered, a spokesperson said.
Lady Rafferty began her professional career as a barrister in 1973 and practised in criminal law. She was the first woman to chair the Criminal Bar Association. In 2015 she was made Chancellor of the University of Sheffield. Appointed a Lord Justice of Appeal in 2011 and a High Court judge in the Queen’s Bench division in 2000, she became a deputy High Court judge in 1996.Highly opinionated with an irritation against poor standards, Lady Rafferty is believed to be the right person to kick negligent family judges into place.
CONDEMNATION
It follows an outright condemnation last month by the High Court against a judgement by His Honour Judge Tolson as being ‘so flawed as to require a retrial’ . The High Court also said it displayed ‘obsolescent’ views on sexual consent. The decision, in which Tolson J found against a mother of a young child in a case concerning allegations of domestic abuse and serious sexual assault, was called ’unjust’.
The Honourable Ms Justice Russell DBE, in JH v MF, found that the ‘judge’s conclusion on whether sex was consensual or not is wrongly predicated on the presumption that to establish non-consensual penetration the complainant should have physically resisted… The logical conclusion of this judge’s approach is that it is both lawful and acceptable for a man to have sex with his partner regardless of their enjoyment or willingness to participate.’
A panel of experts established by the Ministry of Justice in 2019,is scheduled to report its findings on how family courts deal with domestic abuse and other serious offences shortly. The judiciary said the report is ‘likely to look at the role of all professionals engaged in domestic abuse cases. Its recommendations, including any relating to training, will be of importance’.