313.Under section 274 of the 1995 Act, where a person is accused of a sexual offence listed in section 288C of that Act, the court must not admit evidence or allow questioning which shows or tends to show that the complainer:
	is not of good character (whether in relation to sexual matters or otherwise)
	has, at any time, engaged in sexual behaviour not forming part of the subject-matter of the charge
	has, at any time (other than shortly before, at the same time as or shortly after the acts which form part of the subject-matter of the charge), engaged in behaviour, not being sexual behaviour, as might found the inference that the complainer is likely to have consented to those acts or is not a credible or reliable witness, or
	has, at any time, been subject to any condition or predisposition as might found such an inference.
314.But section 275(1) of the 1995 Act provides that the court can admit such evidence or questioning if, on the application of the accused or the prosecutor, the court is satisfied that:
	the evidence or questioning will relate only to a specific occurrence or occurrences of sexual or other behaviour or to specific facts demonstrating the complainer’s character or any condition or predisposition to which the complainer is or has been subject
	that occurrence or those occurrences of behaviour or facts are relevant to establishing whether the accused is guilty of the offence charged, and
	the probative value of the evidence sought to be admitted or elicited is significant and is likely to outweigh any risk of prejudice to the proper administration of justice arising from its being admitted or elicited.
315.For the purposes of section 275(1), “the proper administration of justice” includes appropriate protection of the complainer’s dignity and privacy.
316.Section 105 amends section 274 to expand the range of offences in relation to which sections 274 and 275 apply. In addition to offences to which section 288C of the 1995 Act applies (broadly, sexual offences), it adds two new categories of offence, namely—
	offences to which section 288DC(1)(a) of the 1995 Act applies (that is, offences under section 1(1) of the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018), where it is apparent from the offence as charged that the alleged abusive behaviour included behaviour that could constitute an offence to which section 288C applies, and
	offences in connection with which a docket is included in the indictment or complaint (under section 288BA of the 1995 Act or under common law) but only if the alleged behaviour specified in the docket included behaviour that could constitute an offence to which section 288C applies.
317.As a consequence of the expansion of the range of offences to which section 274 applies, it is necessary to amend the definition of “complainer” and section 105(2)(c) amends section 274(2) to achieve this.
Crown Application Restrictions on evidence relating to sexual offences Section 105 – restrictions on evidence relating to sexual offences