-->

Course focus

15th Annual Planning Law Conference

Date:
08 December 2008
Venue:
Royal College of Surgeons, London
CPD:
5.0

Training programmes

Corporate Manslaughter & Corporate Homicide Act 2007

The Course will assist Local Authorities to understand the new legislation, realise its role in the panoply of health and safety measures and consider ways of avoiding its bite.

The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 received its Royal Assent on 26th July 2007. It applies to England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. It applies to actions or omissions that occur on or after 6th April 2008. The new offence can be prosecuted if the harm resulting in death occurs in the UK, in the UK territorial waters, on a British ship, aircraft or hovercraft or on an oil rig already covered by UK criminal law (see Section 28). It establishes a statutory offence of manslaughter for organisations either corporate or treated as corporate and includes local authorities within its ambit. It requires permission of the DPP for prosecution. Words which may ring very distant bells with criminal lawyers such as ‘tort’ and ‘gross breach of duty of care’ come back to haunt adding seasoning to an already tricky area.

What the day will cover:

  • Who can be prosecuted?
  • Duty Of Care?
  • Who can prosecute?
  • What does the Offence entail?
  • What is the relationship between Corporate Manslaughter and health and safety offences
  • Permission to Prosecute?
  • How can prosecution be avoided?

 

Programme directory