Robin Palmer “Case Note: Counter-intuitive sexual abuse evidence, Emotive language and Inadvertently-elicited potentially prejudicial evidence: Kohai v R [2015] NZSC 36 and DH v R [2015] NZSC 35” [2016] NZCLR 48

Abstract

I. INTRODUCTION

The two Supreme Court appeals, Kohai v R¹ and DH v R,² focused primarily on various aspects of so-called ‘counter-intuitive’ expert sexual abuse evidence.³ The overall objective of expert counter-intuitive sexual abuse evidence is to provide the fact-finder with a comprehensive conceptual framework in terms of which evidence of sexual abuse must be understood. This purpose was explained in the 1999 Law Commission report on the Reform of the Law of Evidence:⁴....