{"id":6522,"date":"2018-10-12T12:38:31","date_gmt":"2018-10-12T12:38:31","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2020-12-09T10:58:11","modified_gmt":"2020-12-09T10:58:11","slug":"youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php","title":{"rendered":"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999"},"content":{"rendered":"

Background<\/strong><\/p>\n

One of the practical realities affecting the criminal justice system is that the success or failure of many criminal prosecutions depends largely upon the availability, and quality, of evidence given by witnesses. It is also an unfortunate reality that, in many such cases, the witness or witnesses relied upon by the prosecution require assistance or, in extreme cases, protection so as to give the best testimony possible. The issue is perceived to be particularly acute where key witnesses are children and may be required to testify to abuse that they, themselves, have suffered, although the same difficulties often arise with adult victims, for instance in the context of domestic abuse. Securing a conviction, therefore, often turns on the ability of the court system to accommodate the special needs of vulnerable or at-risk witnesses, and in that respect the existing legal and procedural regimes were broadly considered to be inadequate. The Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 (YJCEA) was introduced as part of New Labour\u2019s stated aim of modernising the youth justice system.<\/p>\n

Statutory purpose<\/strong><\/p>\n

The YJCEA was introduced with a view to facilitating the ability of vulnerable and\/or intimidated witnesses to give evidence efficiently and safely in criminal court proceedings. The principal aim, therefore, is to strengthen the hand of the prosecution in criminal cases by allowing vulnerable witnesses to access a range of measures designed to improve the quality of evidence given and to allow testimony from witnesses that might previously have been unable to participate, and so would have been considered incompetent to give such testimony.<\/p>\n

Statutory Approach<\/strong><\/p>\n

In legal terms, as is indicated above, the methodology of the YJCEA revolves largely around the introduction of a series of \u2018special measures\u2019, introduced in Part II of the Act, as well as significant procedural reform of the youth criminal justice system, introduced in Part I.<\/p>\n

Part I enacts a new sentencing disposal with respect to youth offenders, permitting referral to a Youth Offender Panel, with such referral being compulsory for first-time offenders. Part I also provides for the drawing up of \u2018youth offender contracts\u2019 and a \u2018programme of behaviour\u2019 with a view to lowering rates of recidivism. This aspect of the YJCEA has since been repealed and consolidated by the<\/p>\n

Part II YJCEA introduces a number of provisions which are designed to facilitate the gathering and giving of evidence by assisting vulnerable witnesses. These measures apply to both prosecution and defence witnesses (but not the defendant) and include: provision of privacy screens (s.23), the ability to testify via live-link from an outside location (s.24), the ability to exclude members of the public and press (s.25), the use of intermediaries (s.29), prohibition of cross-examination, in person, by the defendant in certain cases (ss.34-36) and the ability of the court to enforce reporting restrictions (s.46).<\/p>\n

Key Provisions<\/strong><\/p>\n

Section 41<\/strong><\/p>\n

Section 41 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 is geared specifically towards the protection of complainants in proceedings for sexual offences by restricting evidence of a complainant\u2019s sexual history, or questioning concerning said history, except for certain exceptions.<\/p>\n

In essence s.41 institutes a structured approach to the exercise of judicial discretion in sexual offences cases, effectively limiting the circumstances in which evidence of a complainant\u2019s sexual history can be admitted or examined.<\/p>\n

In addition, the court must be satisfied that to refuse leave would result in an unsafe conclusion being drawn on a relevant issue of trial. Permission will also be refused by the court if it is considered that the principal aim of evidence claimed to relate to a relevant issue is simply to undermine the complainant\u2019s reliability.<\/p>\n

Section 45<\/strong><\/p>\n

Section 45, which disapplies section 38 of the Children and Young Persona Act 1933, provides that a court may direct that no matter pertaining to any person concerned in the proceedings can, while they are under 18, be included in any publication if said inclusion is likely to lead members of the public to identify them as a person concerned in the proceedings.<\/p>\n

Section 45 should be read in conjunction with s.45A, which allows for lifelong anonymity to be granted if the requisite conditions of the section are made out. Such a direction may only be made if the quality of the evidence given by the person in question, or the level of co-operation given by the person as a party to the proceedings, is likely to be diminished due to fear or distress at their potential identification as a person connected with the proceedings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the practical realities affecting the criminal justice system is that the success or failure of many criminal prosecutions depends largely…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[85],"class_list":["post-6522","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-acts","tag-uk-law"],"yoast_head":"\nYouth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 | LawTeacher.net<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"One of the practical realities affecting the criminal justice system is that the success or failure of many criminal prosecutions depends largely...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One of the practical realities affecting the criminal justice system is that the success or failure of many criminal prosecutions depends largely...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"LawTeacher.net\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LawTeacherNet\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LawTeacherNet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/LT-large-logo.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"LawTeacher\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@LawTeacherNet\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@LawTeacherNet\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"LawTeacher\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"ScholarlyArticle\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"LawTeacher\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/person\/b99962c073c877c4ab8ee3d2486cd56e\"},\"headline\":\"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999\",\"datePublished\":\"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php\"},\"wordCount\":752,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"UK Law\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Act Summaries\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php\",\"name\":\"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 | LawTeacher.net\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00\",\"description\":\"One of the practical realities affecting the criminal justice system is that the success or failure of many criminal prosecutions depends largely...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/\",\"name\":\"Law Teacher\",\"description\":\"The Law Essay Professionals\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"LawTeacher.net\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Law Teacher\",\"alternateName\":\"LawTeacher.net\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/LT-logo.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/LT-logo.jpg\",\"width\":250,\"height\":250,\"caption\":\"Law Teacher\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LawTeacherNet\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/LawTeacherNet\",\"https:\/\/api.whatsapp.com\/send\/?phone=447723491966&text&type=phone_number&app_absent=0\"],\"description\":\"Law Teacher provides academic writing services for law students throughout the world.\",\"email\":\"contact@lawteacher.net\",\"telephone\":\"+44 115 966 7966\",\"numberOfEmployees\":{\"@type\":\"QuantitativeValue\",\"minValue\":\"51\",\"maxValue\":\"200\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/person\/b99962c073c877c4ab8ee3d2486cd56e\",\"name\":\"LawTeacher\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4fdfab0a9ef25209f111018ecc8a983e19e57c5066a9277217a119582ccbeed3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4fdfab0a9ef25209f111018ecc8a983e19e57c5066a9277217a119582ccbeed3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"LawTeacher\"},\"description\":\"LawTeacher.net is the UK's leading provider of academic legal support, offering both writing services and an extensive collection of law study resources for students in the UK and overseas. Founded in 2003 by Grey's Inn graduate Barclay Littlewood, the Company was built on a commitment to excellence, with unique guarantees and a high standard of service from day one. The team includes over 500 UK legally qualified writing experts, with many practising solicitors and barristers, and several former lecturers.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LawTeacherNet\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/LawTeacherNet\",\"https:\/\/gravatar.com\/lawteacherprofile\"],\"knowsAbout\":[\"Contract Law\",\"Criminal Law\",\"Constitutional and Administrative Law\",\"EU Law\",\"Tort Law\",\"Property Law\",\"Equity and Trusts\",\"Jurisprudence\",\"Company Law\",\"Commercial Law\",\"Family Law\",\"Human Rights Law\",\"Employment Law\",\"Evidence\",\"Public International Law\",\"Legal Research and Methods\",\"Dispute Resolution\",\"Business Law and Practice\",\"Civil Litigation\",\"Criminal Litigation\",\"Professional Conduct\",\"Taxation\",\"Wills and Administration of Estates\",\"Solicitors\u2019 Accounts\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/author\/lawteacher\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 | LawTeacher.net","description":"One of the practical realities affecting the criminal justice system is that the success or failure of many criminal prosecutions depends largely...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999","og_description":"One of the practical realities affecting the criminal justice system is that the success or failure of many criminal prosecutions depends largely...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php","og_site_name":"LawTeacher.net","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LawTeacherNet\/","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LawTeacherNet","article_published_time":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1920,"height":1080,"url":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/LT-large-logo.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"LawTeacher","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@LawTeacherNet","twitter_site":"@LawTeacherNet","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"LawTeacher","Estimated reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"ScholarlyArticle","@id":"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php"},"author":{"name":"LawTeacher","@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/person\/b99962c073c877c4ab8ee3d2486cd56e"},"headline":"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999","datePublished":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php"},"wordCount":752,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#organization"},"keywords":["UK Law"],"articleSection":["Act Summaries"],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php","url":"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php","name":"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 | LawTeacher.net","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#website"},"datePublished":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00+00:00","description":"One of the practical realities affecting the criminal justice system is that the success or failure of many criminal prosecutions depends largely...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"http:\/\/64.226.118.242:8001\/acts\/youth-justice-and-criminal-evidence-act-1999.php#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#website","url":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/","name":"Law Teacher","description":"The Law Essay Professionals","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#organization"},"alternateName":"LawTeacher.net","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#organization","name":"Law Teacher","alternateName":"LawTeacher.net","url":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/LT-logo.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/LT-logo.jpg","width":250,"height":250,"caption":"Law Teacher"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LawTeacherNet\/","https:\/\/x.com\/LawTeacherNet","https:\/\/api.whatsapp.com\/send\/?phone=447723491966&text&type=phone_number&app_absent=0"],"description":"Law Teacher provides academic writing services for law students throughout the world.","email":"contact@lawteacher.net","telephone":"+44 115 966 7966","numberOfEmployees":{"@type":"QuantitativeValue","minValue":"51","maxValue":"200"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/person\/b99962c073c877c4ab8ee3d2486cd56e","name":"LawTeacher","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/wp.lawteacher.net\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4fdfab0a9ef25209f111018ecc8a983e19e57c5066a9277217a119582ccbeed3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4fdfab0a9ef25209f111018ecc8a983e19e57c5066a9277217a119582ccbeed3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"LawTeacher"},"description":"LawTeacher.net is the UK's leading provider of academic legal support, offering both writing services and an extensive collection of law study resources for students in the UK and overseas. Founded in 2003 by Grey's Inn graduate Barclay Littlewood, the Company was built on a commitment to excellence, with unique guarantees and a high standard of service from day one. The team includes over 500 UK legally qualified writing experts, with many practising solicitors and barristers, and several former lecturers.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LawTeacherNet","https:\/\/x.com\/LawTeacherNet","https:\/\/gravatar.com\/lawteacherprofile"],"knowsAbout":["Contract Law","Criminal Law","Constitutional and Administrative Law","EU Law","Tort Law","Property Law","Equity and Trusts","Jurisprudence","Company Law","Commercial Law","Family Law","Human Rights Law","Employment Law","Evidence","Public International Law","Legal Research and Methods","Dispute Resolution","Business Law and Practice","Civil Litigation","Criminal Litigation","Professional Conduct","Taxation","Wills and Administration of Estates","Solicitors\u2019 Accounts"],"url":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/author\/lawteacher"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6522","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6522"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6522\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6522"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6522"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6522"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}