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Top lawyer warns there's no escape for killer companies
15/04/2008

A leading Manchester health and safety lawyer has warned there will soon be no hiding place for companies found guilty of causing a person`s death.

The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 - which came into force on April 6 - should make it easier to convict companies which have fatally breached their duty of care.

Its introduction marks the conclusion of a lengthy campaign for new laws on so-called "corporate killings" following a series of high profile train crashes and other disasters, from the sinking of the Herald of Free Enterprise in 1987 to the outbreak of Legionnaires` disease in Barrow-in-Furness in 2002.

Under the new legislation, which removes a major obstacle to convictions for corporate manslaughter, the courts can also make new kinds of orders, including a publicity order, which will force the guilty organisation to publicise details of the conviction, the offence, the level of fine imposed and any remedial actions required.

Jim Percival, a Partner and Head of Regulatory at Brabners Chaffe Street, says:

"Before the new legislation, it was almost impossible for prosecutors to secure manslaughter convictions against companies or other organisations responsible for causing deaths.

"Now, an organisation will be guilty of corporate manslaughter if it can be shown that the management of its activities has caused a person`s death and amounted to a gross breach of the duty of care it owed to the deceased. There will be no need to show that a senior individual within the organisation would himself be guilty of manslaughter, as was the case in the past.

"The role of senior management remains a key element in the offence so, with increased potential for successful, high profile prosecutions, we are likely to see an increase in the level of scrutiny by police and regulators into the activities of directors and their senior management following workplace fatalities.

"As well as increasing the likelihood of a conviction for manslaughter in such cases, the 2007 Act gives the court powers to make new kinds of orders, such as publicity orders, following a conviction. A failure to comply with this order would itself be a criminal offence.

"A company which is found guilty and issued with a publicity order has to tell the public all about the conviction, meaning they would really have no place left to hide.

"Organisations should view this new legislation as a real incentive to ensure that they comply across the board with their own responsibilities for the health and safety of workers and others to whom they owe such duties.

"From the boardroom and throughout the organisation, the company`s culture should be one of a sustained and genuine commitment to health and safety.

"The consequences of failing to do so, given the impact in both financial and reputation terms of a highly publicised conviction for manslaughter, promise to be much more significant than ever before."


For further information contact Jim Percival at Brabners Chaffe Street on 0151 600 3317

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