Corporate Responsibility And Criminal Liability: Where Should The Line Be Drawn?

The Crime and Policing Act 2026 has now received Royal Assent and the controversial provision expanding the ‘senior manager test’ (section 250), which makes organisations criminally liable for any offence committed by a senior manager while acting within the actual or apparent scope of their authority, will come into force on 29 June 2026. 

Much commentary has focussed on the surprising ways in which corporate criminal liability will be expanded for a range of offences in areas as diverse as competition law, modern slavery, and data protection. The drafting even leaves open the possibility of organisations being prosecuted for driving or sexual offences albeit that such prosecutions can be expected to fail (courts have repeatedly held that offences requiring physical acts, such as driving or sexual offences, can only be committed by natural persons).