Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Bad character definition

What does Bad character mean? Bad character describes evidence of a person’s prior misconduct—such as previous convictions or other reprehensible behaviour—used to suggest a propensity to commit similar offences or a tendency to be untruthful. In England and Wales, it is a statutory concept under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (ss 98–113). It excludes important explanatory evidence and the facts of the alleged offence. Evidence of a defendant’s bad character is admissible only through the statutory “gateways” and is subject to the court’s fairness test; for non-defendant witnesses it must have substantial probative value on a material issue. “Misconduct” covers the commission of an offence...

Excluding Bad Character Evidence in Criminal Trials: CJA 2003 s 101(3), s 103(3), PACE s 78, co-defendants, Article 6 and CrimPR 2025 (England and Wales)

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Practice notes

Excluding evidence of the defendant's 'Bad character' under CJA 2003, s 101(3)

Where material demonstrating a defendant’s bad character is capable of admission under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (CJA 2003) to indicate a tendency to offend or to be dishonest (gateway D), or to meet an attack on another individual’s character (gateway G), the CJA 2003 provides that the court ‘must not admit’ that material if it appears that receiving it would have such an adverse impact on the fairness of the proceedings that the court ought not to receive it. For guidance on the circumstances in which Gateways D and G operate, see the Practice Notes: Admissibility of bad character to prove propensity, Admissibility of bad character to prove untruthfulness, and Admission of bad character to correct false impression or to counter an attack, for further information and application guidance...

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Alex McHugh

Pump Court Chambers

Alex McHugh joined Pump Court Chambers following successful completion of his pupillage. His key areas of practice are criminal defence, family, and landlord & tenant disputes. Prior to joining Chambers, Alex worked as a paralegal for a number of years at a Legal 500 firm in London. Two of those years were spent in crime under the stewardship of extremely experienced senior partners. Alex helped manage cases from beginning to end and represented all manner of clients in respect of a full range of alleged offences. As counsel, Alex defends his clients throughout every stage of proceedings. Alex accepts private and, where applicable, publicly funded briefs on road traffic offences, and has experience in representing clients in relation to speeding, drinking driving, “totting up”, and causing injury by dangerous driving offences. Alex predominantly works across the Western Circuit, London, and the South East. ...

Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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