Intro To Basic Principles Of Criminal Liability Notes

• - Criminal law: definitions + purpose.

  • crime: public wrong – behaviour deemed unacceptable by society.

    • but not all wrongs = crimes: e.g. adultery.

  • purpose of criminal law: regulation, prevention, punishment, clarity to protect: 1. society as a whole; 2. individual interests; 3. certain property rights.

  • offences/crimes: set out ‘the rules’ – what is required to commit a public wrong.

  - Criminal law: complex + evolving.

  • historical context governs some principles: e.g. impossible to conspire with spouse.

  • but: evolution: courts interpret law through case law + govt. updates law through amendments, repeals + creation of new offences.

    • e.g. marital rape: recognised as crime in 1991; homosexuality: decriminalised in 1967; defences for murder: Coroners and Justice Act 2009 replaced ‘provocation’ with ‘loss of control’.

  - General principles of criminal justice: balance between protecting society + individual rights.

  • rights of accused: innocent until proven guilty; fair trial; burden of proof on prosecution.

  - Distinction between criminal and civil law.

  • crime: public wrong – public interest in prevention of actions.

  • tort or breach of contract: civil wrongs – private matter to be resolved between parties

    • only wronged party can bring claim (vs. crime: CPS on behalf of public).

    • remedy: damages to injured party or injunction (vs. crime: punishment by state).

  • but: overlap – same action can be both crime + civil wrong (e.g. crime of battery + tort of trespass to the person).

  - Burden and standard of proof: prosecution must prove crime ‘beyond reasonable doubt’.

  • Woolmington v DPP [1935] AC 462: presumption of innocence first articulated.

    • Viscount Sankey: ‘golden thread’ in English Criminal Law.

  • current jury direction: ‘how does the prosecution succeed in proving the defendant’s guilt? The answer is – by making you sure of it. Nothing less than that will do.’

  • defences: most – burden still on prosecution to disprove beyond reasonable doubt.

    • some: burden on defendant civil standard: ‘balance of probabilities’

  - Classification of offences: summary, indictable only, ‘either way’ determines trial court.

  • summary offences: least serious (e.g. common assault) can only be tried in magistrates’ court (max. penalty: 12 months imprisonment + 5000 fine).

  • indictable only offences: most serious can only be tried in Crown Court by judge + jury (max. penalty imposed by statute).

    • e.g. murder, manslaughter, GBH with intent, rape, robbery, blackmail.

  • either way offences: seriousness dep. on facts of incident can be tried in either magistrates’ court or Crown Court.

    • decision: made by magistrates; or defendant can always opt for jury trial.

    • e.g. criminal damage (dep. on value), assault occasioning ABH, unlawful wounding, theft, fraud, burglary.

  - Elements of criminal liability: actus reus, mens rea + absence of valid defence (Lanham).

  • actus reus: action of the defendant prohibited by law – varies by offence.

    • conduct offences: law only requires certain acts, not harmful consequences.

      • e.g. fraud by false representation (s2 Fraud Act 2006): d. must simply make unture/misleading representation.

    • result offences: action must lead to specified consequence.

      • e.g. murder: d.’s actions must lead to death of victim.

      • causation: must be proved by prosecution in unbroken chain.

    • surrounding circumstances: sometimes required in addition to conduct/result.

      • e.g. theft (Theft Act 1968): property must be ‘belonging to another’.

    • omissions: in some offences, criminal liability arises from failure to act.

  • mens rea: required mental element for the crime – varies by offence.

    • intention: d. must have intended a specified crime or result.

      • e.g. murder: d. must...

Buy the full version of these notes or essay plans and more in our GDL Criminal Law Notes.