Organisations guilty of corporate manslaughter should face publicity orders and fines based on average annual turnover – these are the key proposals from the Sentencing Advisory Panel in a consultation paper published today.

The Sentencing Advisory Panel is an independent advisory and consultative body. It started work on 1 July 1999 and now is constituted under section 169 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003. It is sponsored by the Ministry of Justice.

The imposition of significant fines would reflect the serious concerns resulting from the unnecessary loss of life involved in corporate manslaughter, where death has been caused by a gross breach of the duty of care that an organisation owed to the deceased. The prospect of large fines should also encourage compliance with health and safety regulations.

The courts may also impose a publicity order – a new sanction that is designed to bring the failings of the offending organisation to the attention of the public – and the Panel proposes that, in principle, courts should impose a publicity order on every organisation convicted of the offence.

A range of publicity options is suggested in the consultation paper, including the placing of an advertisement in newspapers and trade journals or on television or radio as well as ordering letters be sent to shareholders and customers.

The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 was enacted in response to problems applying the existing common law offence of manslaughter by gross negligence to organisations rather than to individual defendants; it is due to come into force on 6 April 2008.

The offence of corporate manslaughter is designed to secure, in a wider range of situations than under existing law, a conviction for a criminal offence that properly reflects the seriousness of the worst instances of management failure causing death. It is designed to complement, rather than replace, existing health and safety offences.

Comprehensive guidelines are required as corporate manslaughter is a new offence and one that also incorporates a totally new sanction (publicity orders) with which the courts are unfamiliar.

In short the paper suggests:

"When sentencing for an offence of corporate manslaughter, the starting point should be:

• the imposition of a publicity order; and
• a fine of 5 per cent of the offender’s average annual turnover;
• within a fine range of 2.5 - 10 per cent of average annual turnover."
  

The sentencing panel proposes that, in relation to the actual level of fine, the court should take into account the following aggravating factors:

• more than one person killed as a result of the offence;
• serious injury caused to one of more others, in addition to the death(s);
• serious injury caused to one or more others, in addition to the death(s);
• failure to act upon advice, cautions or warning from regulatory authorities;
• failure to heed relevant concerns of employees or others;
• offender carrying out operations without an appropriate licence;
• action or lack of action prompted by financial or other inappropriate motives;
• corporate culture encouraging or producing tolerance of breach of duty.

A number of questions on which views are sought are raised in the paper.

Please send your response to Mrs Lesley Dix, Secretary to the Panel, at the Sentencing Guidelines Secretariat, 4th Floor, 8-10 Great George Street, London SW1P 3AE, or by email to info@sentencing-guidelines.gsi.gov.uk. Responses should be received by 7 February 2008.

The consultation will close on 7 February 2008.

Following the consultation, the Panel will submit its advice to the Sentencing Guidelines Council.

Download full consultation document

Source: SAP press release