England: Charges dropped against lawyer accused of rush-hour sexual assault

Graeme Stening, 52, a leading private equity lawyer, has waited eight months for the decision.

Police are believed to have confirmed there is a lack of evidence to charge Mr Stening in a case that originally saw the woman he was accused of assaulting, a QC, accept a police caution for public indecency before changing her mind and claiming sexual assault six weeks later.

Her initial acceptance has prompted some experts to say the case may fall foul of the anonymity rules because her identity is automatically hidden under the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

Last summer, Mr Stening was allegedly spotted with the woman outside Waterloo, with witnesses claiming the woman’s underwear was around her ankles.

Mr Stening refused a caution and was charged with outraging public decency – which he denies. The case will be heard at Camberwell Magistrates’ Court on 23 June. The QC will be guaranteed continued anonymity as a result of her allegation. It is understood she is considering appealing the assault decision.

Mark Stephens, a media and human rights law partner at Howard Kennedy said: “This case is an abject lesson in the manipulation of the anonymity laws around allegations of sexual assault.

“There are very good reasons for having anonymity in many cases.

“However, if there are many more cases like this one, then the public interest is going to demand that the alleged victims are also named.”

Mr Stephens suggested an alternative would be to grant both the alleged offender and victim anonymity, though added that “doing so would drive a coach and horses through our traditional principles of open justice”.