What Constitutes Consent?

Consent is a major issue in defining sexual assault, particularly when the two people involved know each other. What constitutes consent?

• Both you and your partner are fully conscious and unimpaired by alcohol or other substances.
• Both you and your partner are free to act and understand there will not be unwanted consequences for saying "no".
• Both you and your partner have positively and clearly communicated your intent.
• Both you and your partner are positive and sincere in your desires.

Note also that resistance is not necessary in order to prove non-consent. When one or both individuals have been drinking or doing drugs, consent becomes even more complicated. Legally, intoxication is not a defense against sexual assault, and non-consent is assumed if a person has been drinking to the point where her/his ability to consent is impaired. Aside from the legal issue, drunken sex is also ill-advised because it's risky in terms of unwanted pregnancy and disease transmission.