The Fraud Act 2006 (2006 c. English law is the legal system of England and Wales, and is the basis of Common law legal systems used in most Commonwealth countriesand the Common law refers to law and the corresponding legal system developed through decisions of courts and similar tribunals rather than through legislative statutes or executive A summary offense, also known as a petty crime, is a criminal act in some Common law jurisdictions that can be proceeded with summarily without the right In many Common law Jurisdictions (eg the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Canada, United States, India, A hybrid offence, dual offence, Crown option offence, dual procedure offence, or wobbler are the special class offences in the Common law Regulatory offences or quasi-criminal offences are a class of crime in which the standard for proving Culpability has been lowered so a Mens rea A lesser included offense, in Criminal law, is a crime for which all of the elements necessary to impose Liability are also elements found in a more serious crime Actus reus, sometimes called the external element or the objective element of a crime is the Latin term for the "guilty act" which when proved Causation is the "causal relationship between conduct and result In Criminal law, mens rea the Latin term for "guilty mind" is usually one of the necessary elements of a Crime. In the Criminal law, intention is one of the three general classes of Mens rea necessary to constitute a conventional as opposed to In English Criminal law, intention is one of the types of Mens rea ( Latin for "guilty mind" that when accompanied by an In the Criminal law, recklessness (also called unchariness) is one of the four possible classes of mental state constituting Mens rea (the In the Criminal law, criminal negligence is one of the three general classes of Mens rea ( Latin for "guilty mind" element required In the Criminal law, corporate liability determines the extent to which a Corporation as a fictitious person can be liable for the acts and omissions The legal principle of vicarious liability applies to hold one person liable for the actions of another when engaged in some form of joint or collective activity In Criminal law, strict liability is liability for which Mens rea ( Latin for "guilty mind" does not have to be proven in relation In the Criminal law, an omission, or failure to act will constitute an Actus reus ( Latin for "guilty act" and give rise to liability In Western Jurisprudence, concurrence, (or contemporaneity or simultaneity) is the apparent need to prove the simultaneous occurrence Ignorantia juris non excusat or Ignorantia legis neminem excusat ( Latin for " Ignorance of the Law does not excuse" In English Criminal law, incitement is an anticipatory Common law offence and is the act of persuading encouraging instigating pressuring or threatening In the Criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between Natural persons to break the law at some time in the future and in some cases with at least one overt act An accessory is a person who assists in the commission of a Crime, but who does not actually participate in the commission of the crime as a joint principal Attempt crimes are crimes where the defendant's actions have the form of the actual enaction of the crime itself the actions must go beyond mere preparation In Criminal law, the doctrine of common purpose, common design or joint enterprise refers to the situation where two or more people embark on a project In the Criminal law, consent may be an Excuse and prevent the defendant from incurring Liability for what was done For duress in US law see Duress Duress in English criminal law is a complete common law defence operating in favour of those who commit For the discussion on general principles and policy see Necessity In English law, the defence of necessity recognises that there may In English Criminal law, the defence of self-defence provides for the right of people to act in a manner that would be otherwise unlawful in order to preserve the For a description of the general principles see Provocation (legal. For the law in other Criminal jurisdictions see Diminished responsibility. The M'Naghten Rules (pronounced and sometimes spelled McNaughton) were the first serious attempt to Codify and rationalise the attitude of the criminal law towards In Criminal law, a common assault is a Crime when the Victim apprehends immediate use of unlawful violence by the Defendant or the Defendant Battery is a term used by the Common law jurisdictions which involves an Injury or other Contact upon the Person of another in a manner likely Assault Occasioning Actual Bodily Harm (often abbreviated to Assault O Inflicting Grievous Bodily Harm (often abbreviated to GBH) is a phrase used in English Criminal law which was introduced in sections 18 and 20 The Offences Against the Person Act 1861 (24 & 25 Vict c100 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In English law, murder is considered the most serious form of Homicide, in which one person kills another either intending to cause death or intending to For a discussion of the law in other countries see Manslaughter In the English law of Homicide, manslaughter is a less serious Corporate manslaughter is a Criminal offence in English law, being an act of Homicide committed by a company. Harassment refers to a wide spectrum of offensive behaviour The term commonly refers to behaviour intended to disturb or upset and when the term is used in a legal sense it refers In English law causing criminal damage was originally a Common law offence. In English law causing criminal damage was originally a Common law offence. The Public Order Act 1986 creates offences commonly used by United Kingdom police to deal with public disorder and Violence. For the law of Tort, see Nuisance In the English Criminal law, public nuisance is a class of Common law offence The Theft Act 1968 (1968 c60 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, governing most of the general property offences in English law. In Criminal law, theft (also known as stealing or filching) is the illegal taking of another person's Property without that person's freely-given Dishonesty is a word which in common usage may be defined as the act or to act without honesty a lack of probity to cheat lying or being deliberately deceptive lacking in Robbery is the Crime of seizing Property through Violence or Intimidation. A TWOC can also be a medical procedure - a trial without Catheter TWOC is an Acronym standing for Taking Without Owner's Consent. In English law, the main deception offences are defined in the Theft Act 1968 (TA68 the Theft Act 1978 and the Theft (Amendment Act 1996 Blackmail is the crime of threatening to reveal substantially true information about a person to the public a family member or associates unless a demand made upon the In English Criminal law, handling takes place after the Theft is completed and is committed by a fence or other person who helps the thief to realise The Theft Act 1978 supplemented the earlier Deception offences in English law contained in sections 15 and 16 of the Theft Act 1968 by reforming some aspects of those Forgery is the process of making adapting or imitating objects statistics or documents (see False document) with the intent to deceive. Computer crime, Cybercrime, e-crime, hi-tech crime or electronic crime generally refers to criminal activity where a Computer Rape, also referred to as Sexual assault, is an Assault by a person involving Sexual intercourse with or Sexual penetration of another person In Criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or Asportation of a person against the person's will usually to hold the person in False imprisonment Bribery, a form of pecuniary corruption is an act usually implying money or gift given that alters the behaviour of the recipient in ways not consistent with the duties of that person Perjury, also known as forswearing, is the act of lying or making verifiably false statements on a material matter under Oath or Affirmation in a The crime of obstruction of justice includes crimes committed by Judges Prosecutors attorneys general, and elected officials in general Criminal procedure refers to the legal process for adjudicating claims that someone has violated Criminal law. A contract is an exchange of promises between two or more parties to do or refrain from doing an act which is enforceable in a court of law Tort law is the name given to a body of law that creates and provides remedies for civil wrongs that do not arise out of Contractual duties Property law is the area of Law that governs the various forms of Ownership in Real property (land as distinct from personal or movable possessions In Common law, a will or testament is a document by which a person (the Testator) regulates the rights of others over his or her Property The law of trusts and estates is generally considered the body of Law which governs the management of personal affairs and the Disposition of Property of The Law of evidence governs the use of Testimony (eg oral or written statements such as an Affidavit) and exhibits (e 35) is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom, affecting England and Wales and Northern Ireland. An Act of Parliament is a Law enacted as Primary legislation by a national or sub-national Parliament. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located History The Roman occupation of Britain was the first period in which the area of present-day England and Wales was administered as a single unit (with the exception Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of It was given Royal Assent on 8th November 2006, and came into effect on 15th January 2007. The granting of Royal Assent is the formal method by which a constitutional monarch completes the legislative process of Lawmaking by formally assenting to an [1]
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Purpose
The Act gives a statutory definition of the criminal offence of fraud, defining it in three classes - fraud by false representation, fraud by failing to disclose information, and fraud by abuse of position. In the broadest sense a fraud is a Deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual It provides that a person found guilty of fraud was liable to a fine or imprisonment for up to twelve months on summary conviction (six months in Northern Ireland), or a fine or imprisonment for up to ten years on conviction on indictment. This Act largely replaces the laws relating to obtaining property by deception, obtaining a pecuniary advantage and other offences that were created under the Theft Act 1978. These offences attracted much criticism for their complexity and difficulty in proving at court. Much of the Theft Act 1978 has been repealed, however, the offence of making off without payment, defined under section 3 has not been affected.
- "Fraud by false representation" is defined by Section 2 of the Act as a case where a person makes "any representation as to fact or law . . . express or implied" which they know to be untrue or misleading.
- "Fraud by failing to disclose information" is defined by Section 3 of the Act as a case where a person fails to disclose any information to a third party when they are under a legal duty to disclose such information.
- "Fraud by abuse of position" is defined by Section 4 of the Act as a case where a person occupies a position where they are expected to safeguard the financial interests of another person, and abuses that position; this includes cases where the abuse consisted of an omission rather than an overt act.
In all three classes of fraud, it requires that for an offence to have occurred, the person must have acted dishonestly, and that they had to have acted with the intent of making a gain for themselves or anyone else, or inflicting a loss (or a risk of loss) on another. Dishonesty is a word which in common usage may be defined as the act or to act without honesty a lack of probity to cheat lying or being deliberately deceptive lacking in
Gain and loss
A "gain" or a "loss" is defined to consist only of a gain or a loss in money or property (including intangible property), but could be temporary or permanent. A "gain" could be construed as gaining by keeping their existing possessions, not just by obtaining new ones, and loss included losses of expected acquisitions, as well as losses of already-held property.
The Act will establish two "supporting" offences, these being the possession of articles for use in frauds (Section 7) and the making or supplying of articles for use in frauds (Section 8).
Obtaining Services Dishonestly
Section 11 of the Act makes it a statutory offence to obtain services dishonestly, this being where services which were to be paid for were obtained whilst knowing or intending that payment would not be made. A person found guilty of this will be liable to a fine or imprisonment for up to twelve months on summary conviction (six months in Northern Ireland), or a fine or imprisonment for up to five years on conviction on indictment.
Companies and fraudulent business
In regard to the fraudulent behavior of companies, the existing offence of participating in fraudulent business carried on by a company, provided for by the Companies Act 1985, was amended by Section 10 - bringing the maximum penalty from 7 years imprisonment to 10 years - and a new offence of participating in fraudulent business carried on by a sole trader was established by Section 9. The Companies Act 1985 (1985 c 6 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, enacted in 1985 which enables companies
Section 12 of the Act provides that where an offence against the Act was committed by a body corporate, but was carried out with the "consent or connivance" of any director, manager, secretary or officer of the body - or any person purporting to be such - then that person, as well as the body itself, is liable. In English Law (and as a result throughout the Commonwealth Realms) body corporate is the legal term for a Corporation.
An important difference between this and the Theft Act is that the Fraud Act offences do not require there to have been a victim, as was the case with the Theft Act.
Some Trading Standards services have already used the Act against bogus charity collectors and it will be used for some matters that are currently dealt with under the Trade Descriptions Act (e. The Trade Descriptions Act 1968 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which prevents manufacturers, retailers or Service industry g. car-clocking) when that Act is repealed in Autumn 2007. Odometer fraud, also referred to as "busting miles" or "clocking" (UK and Ireland is the illegal practice of rolling back odometers
References
- ^ The Fraud Act 2006 (Commencement) Order 2006 - SI 2006 No. 3200 (C. 112) ISBN 0-11-075407 7
External links
- Speech heralds fraud shake-up
- Home Office Circular 42/2006
- Fraud Act 2006 - text of the Act
- Fraud Act 2006 - explanatory notes
- Fraud Act 2006 with links to other relevant material including a Presentation.
- This is money - Card victims told 'don't call police'
- Trading Standards Swoop on Bogus Charity Collectors
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