A Longman direction in general terms is insufficient where the specific circumstances relevant to the evaluation of the complainant's testimony are not so obvious that they could not be overlooked by the jury; the trial judge must identify those circumstances. Defence counsel's agreement to the adequacy of a direction at trial does not preclude an appeal ground where there was no forensic advantage in the agreement. Where the Longman direction adequately identifies the specific circumstances, a separate Robinson direction addressing the same circumstances is unnecessary.
The full text is available to signed-in members.