The use of character references in sexual crime cases should be reformed urgently, campaigners have told BBC News NI.

The Tasmanian government says it aims to stop "good character" references being used to lessen sentences for all serious offending. In a statement on Monday, Tasmanian Attorney-General Guy Barnett ...

A survivor of clerical abuse is calling for the Justice Minister to end or limit the use of character references in court cases, particularly in relation to sexual offences against children. Tony ...

Daniel Ramamoorthy lost his appeal against his two year and four-month sentence for sexually exploiting a 13-year-old boy The Court of Appeal has granted the Irish Times access to character references ...

When a Dublin firefighter was sentenced to at least seven years for raping a woman in a Boston hotel in 2024, Irish Times readers learned almost immediately that eight of his colleagues, three nurses, ...

The Court of Appeal has granted The Irish Times access to character references - including one from former TD Jim Glennon - filed on behalf of a one-time government adviser convicted of sexually ...

New South Wales is set to become the first jurisdiction in the country to end the use of good character references in the sentencing of convicted criminals. The government will introduce a bill this ...