5203 L $$aSince the introduction of the Human Rights Act 1998, English courts have been called upon to decide whether 'reverse burdens', that is burdens of proof on a defendant in a criminal trial, are compatible with the right to be presumed innocent protected by Article (2) of the ECHR. Following the lead of the Strasbourg Court, the English courts have leld that the right to be presumed innocent may be subject to proportionate limitations. Accordingly, the doctrine of proportionality, comprising the notion of 'balance' between individual rights and the community interest, has become the touchstone of compliance with Article 6(2). is thesis seeks to move discussion of Article 6(2) beyond the anguage of proportionality and to place the focus on the values underlying the presumption of innocence.