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Campaigners say they are prepared to take the Crown Prosecution Service to court over claims sexual offences cases are being dropped without good reason.
Women’s groups have accused the CPS of secretly changing its policy and practice in relation to decision-making on rape cases in England and Wales.
This was responsible for a major drop in the number of cases resulting in a criminal charge, the coalition said.
The CPS said decisions to prosecute were based on legal tests being met.
The UK-wide End Violence Against Women Coalition (EVAW) said it had a dossier of more than 20 recent cases that were dropped by prosecutors for reasons they felt were spurious or unjustified.
They include one victim who was raped at knifepoint and held prisoner for two days by her boyfriend – a man who was known by police to be violent – campaigners said.
The group said the prosecutor dropped the case, saying WhatsApp messages she had sent to placate her attacker could be misinterpreted by the jury.
Over the past four years the number of rapes reported to police in England and Wales has gone up by 173%, figures show.
But, at the same time, there has been a 44% fall in cases actually getting to court, with only 4% of rape complaints resulting in a prosecution.
EVAW said the lack of cases going to court reflected a change in approach from the CPS and was discriminatory against women and girls, representing a major failure in protecting their human rights.
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Coalition co-director Sarah Green said: “We have strong evidence to show that CPS leaders have quietly changed their approach to decision-making in rape cases, switching from building cases based on their ‘merits’ back to second-guessing jury prejudices.
“This is extremely serious and is having a detrimental impact on women’s access to justice.”
The coalition is due to submit a “letter before action” to the CPS on Monday, urging it to review and change the way it handles serious sexual offence cases.
Once CPS lawyers receive the letter, they will then be given time to respond to the allegations or bid for an extension to the deadline.
If the CPS does not agree to change its policy, the matter could end up being decided by a judicial review in the courts.
“If necessary, we will end up in court opposite the CPS and will have to let judges decide whether we have a case or not,” Ms Green added.
The CPS said there had been no change in approach.
A spokesman said: “Sexual offences are some of the most complex cases we prosecute and we train our prosecutors to understand victim vulnerabilities and the impact of rape, as well as consent, myths and stereotypes.
“Decisions to prosecute are based on whether our legal tests are met – no other reason – and we always seek to prosecute where there is sufficient evidence to do so.
“Victims have the right to ask for a review of their case by another prosecutor, independent of the original decision-maker, and this is another way we can make sure we are fair and transparent in what we do.”
