OKS v Western Australia

The High Court of Australia considered an appeal by OKS against his conviction for indecently dealing with a child under 13 years of age, following a decision of the Court of Appeal of Western Australia. The central issue at trial was the credibility and reliability of the complainant's evidence, who had admitted to lying in certain respects. The trial judge directed the jury that the complainant's admitted lies did not necessarily mean all her evidence was dishonest and unreliable. The Court of Appeal had found this direction to be a wrong decision on a question of law but concluded that no substantial miscarriage of justice had occurred.

The High Court was required to determine whether the Court of Appeal had erred in its application of the proviso under section 30(4) of the *Criminal Appeals Act 2004* (WA), which allows an appeal to be dismissed if no substantial miscarriage of justice has actually occurred, despite a wrong decision on a question of law. This involved assessing whether the trial judge's direction regarding the complainant's admitted lies constituted a misdirection and, if so, whether that misdirection had a significant impact on the jury's verdict.

The High Court reasoned that the trial judge's direction, by suggesting that admitted lies did not automatically render all evidence unreliable, was a wrong decision on a question of law. However, the Court found that the jury's verdict of guilty carried very significant weight and that, notwithstanding the misdirection, there was sufficient evidence to prove guilt. Despite this, the High Court ultimately allowed the appeal, setting aside the order of the Court of Appeal and quashing the appellant's conviction, ordering a new trial.