A Prosecution Opening or Crown Opening (as it is also known) is a written document which explains how the Prosecution are going to “open” the case to the jury. A Crown Opening explains what they are going to say to the jury that you did.
The Opening will be made up of numbered paragraphs detailing the allegations. The importance of the Crown Opening is that it is the case that you have to answer. The Crown cannot provide a Crown Opening and then go to the jury on a completely different basis.
It may also ask for formal admissions of issues that are not in dispute. ie the age of the Complainant, the fact you were at a certain place at a certain time, etc.
The Crown Opening is an extremely important document in the trial process. It may alert you to a way that the Prosecution are trying to prove guilt that had not been clearly expressed previously. The trial Prosecutor should have prepared the document and they may have a different view of how it should run than the instructing solicitor initially had.
