A new method to estimate the elastic-plastic J-integral and the crack tip opening displacement (COD) for circumferential through-wall cracked pipes under tension and under bending is proposed for Leak-Before-Break (LBB) analysis. Being based on the reference stress method with further modifications, the proposed method is simple to use and easy to be generalised in practice. Comparison of the CODs, predicted using the proposed method with published pipe test data show overall excellent agreement.