South Australia has been told to scrap a "gay panic" defence which can be used to reduce a murder offence to manslaughter.
A murder offence can be reduced in some circumstances if a defendant can prove they were provoked into losing control and killing.
The defence has been previously used in cases where the victim allegedly made homosexual advances towards their killer.
But the South Australian Law Reform Institute says the laws are discriminatory on the grounds of sexual orientation and the "gay panic" aspects should be removed.
"The current law of provocation indirectly sanctions lethal violence against those who seem to exhibit homosexual behaviour," institute director John Williams said.
"It's clear to us that the gay panic aspect of the current provocation defence is offensive and should be removed, and that any non-violent sexual advance of any kind should not amount to provocation.
"Our consultation and research have left us in no doubt that the current law is discriminatory on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and also gender."
Provocation can also be used in some cases of domestic violence and Professor Williams said it appeared to favour males over females, and was especially unfair to women subjected to family violence.
He said changes to the law should clarify that in cases of family violence the actual or perceived threats need not be immediate or imminent, and should ensure courts consider the full range of relevant evidence.
The Institute will present a second report in the coming months which will consider whether provocation as a defence be removed entirely.
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