Submission to the Queensland Law Reform Commission’s review of “Queensland’s laws relating to consent and the excuse of mistake of fact”

The Queensland Government has asked the Queensland Law Reform Commission (QLRC) to examine the operation of Queensland's existing laws regarding consent and the defence of mistake of fact as they apply to rape and sexual assaults. This follows a string of decisions in which defendants successfully relied upon the defence to convince a jury that there was a reasonable doubt that the defendant thought they had consent to perform the sexual act. This submission shall address the series of issues raised in the consultation paper released by the QLRC.