Without assuming prior legal knowledge, books in the Directions series introduce and guide readers through key points of law and legal debate. Questions, diagrams, and exercises help readers to engage fully with each subject and check their understanding as they progress. This chapter begins by addressing the question: What is a crime? It then discusses the difference between criminal law, the law of tort, and contract law; the function of criminal law; sources of criminal law; the classification of offences; the criminal justice process; the hierarchy of the criminal courts; the burden and standard of proof; and the elements of an offence.
Chapter
1. Introduction to criminal law
Book
John Child and David Ormerod
Smith, Hogan, and Ormerod’s Essentials of Criminal Law presents a clear and authoritative discussion of the criminal law, combining authority with supportive learning features. The book engages with all the key topics of criminal law on the typical LLB syllabus, whilst encouraging the development of analytical and assessment skills. Particular attention is paid to student assessment, with end-of-chapter sections offering advice on how to approach essay and problem questions. Short learning and assessment tips are provided throughout the chapters. Key cases are highlighted across chapters which include brief summaries of the main facts and judgment. Each chapter includes a section on reform, introducing important academic criticism of the law.
Chapter
1. Introduction
David Ormerod and John Child
This book focuses on substantive criminal law, that is, how offences such as theft and murder are defined. This introductory chapter sets in context criminal offences and defences, first by considering the basis upon which certain conduct is criminalised and other conduct is not. In continuing to set the context, the chapter goes on to consider criminal justice and criminology, criminal evidence, criminal process (including the court structure and central actors), sentencing, civil law protections, and so on. Narrowing to our focus on substantive criminal law—how offences and defences are defined—the chapter moves on to discuss the sources of criminal law, the internal structure of offences and defences, principles of the substantive criminal law, and the subjects to which it applies. Finally, the chapter introduces features on reform and legal application.
Chapter
2. Actus reus
David Ormerod and John Child
This chapter provides an overview of actus reus, which refers to the ‘external elements’ of an offence. These external elements do not simply relate to D’s conduct. Rather, as we will see, the actus reus of an offence includes any offence elements outside the fault element (‘mens rea’) of the offence. Before discussing the elements that form the actus reus, this chapter considers the distinction between actus reus and mens rea. It then describes the three elements of actus reus: conduct, circumstances, and results. It also explains the categories of actus reus offences, omissions liability, and causation before concluding with sections that outline potential options for legal reform and a structure for analysing the actus reus of an offence when applying the law in a problem-type question. Relevant cases are highlighted throughout the chapter, with a brief summary of the main facts and judgments.
Chapter
3. Mens rea
David Ormerod and John Child
This chapter provides an overview of mens rea, loosely translated as ‘guilty mind’. Whereas the concept of actus reus focuses on the external elements of an offence, mens rea focuses on state of mind or fault. The mens rea of the offence describes the fault element with which D acted: D intended, believed, foresaw as a risk the proscribed element(s), and so on. The chapter first considers how offences differ in the role mens rea plays. For some offences, a mens rea element may be required in relation to each actus reus element; for other offences there are actus reus elements that do not have a corresponding mens rea and vice versa. The chapter moves on to discuss the legal meaning of central mens rea terms such as ‘intention’, ‘negligence’, ‘dishonesty’, and ‘recklessness’. Finally, it outlines reform debates, and a structure for analysing the mens rea of an offence when applying the law in a problem-type question. Relevant cases are highlighted throughout the chapter.
Chapter
4. Interaction of actus reus and mens rea
David Ormerod and John Child
This chapter focuses on the interaction between actus reus and mens rea in proving criminal liability. It first considers how actus reus and mens rea relate to one another within the structure of an offence before discussing the issues that also emerge when applying offence requirements to a set of facts. As an example, it explains how every element (conduct, circumstance, and result) of an offence includes an actus reus requirement and a potential corresponding mens rea requirement. It also examines the correspondence principle and the doctrine of transferred malice, along with the coincidence principle. Finally, it outlines potential options for legal reform and a structure for analysing the actus reus and mens rea of an offence when applying the law in problem-type questions. Relevant cases are highlighted throughout the chapter, with brief summaries of the main facts and judgments.
Chapter
5. Murder
David Ormerod and John Child
This chapter focuses on the offence of murder within the context of criminal law, with particular emphasis on its problematic and controversial nature. It first considers the definition of murder in terms of actus reus and mens rea. It then discusses the defences to murder, including general defences, specific complete defences, and partial defences (e.g. loss of self-control, diminished responsibility, and suicide pact). It also outlines potential options for legal reform concerning the mandatory life sentence and the mens rea of murder, and concludes by presenting a structure for applying the actus reus and mens rea for murder to problem facts. Relevant cases are highlighted throughout the chapter, and there are also boxes that highlight common pitfalls to avoid and other areas of confusion for those new to the law.
Chapter
6. Manslaughter
David Ormerod and John Child
This chapter focuses on manslaughter, a common law homicide offence with an actus reus of unlawful conduct causing death. The chapter considers two categories of manslaughter: voluntary manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter. Voluntary manslaughter arises where D commits murder, but meets the criteria for one of the partial defences: loss of self-control, diminished responsibility, or suicide pact. Involuntary manslaughter arises where D does not commit murder, but commits a relevant manslaughter offence: unlawful act manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, or reckless manslaughter. The chapter explains statutory offences of unlawful killing (corporate manslaughter, driving causing death, infanticide, killing of a foetus) and concludes by outlining options for legal reform concerning voluntary manslaughter, involuntary manslaughter, and the structure of manslaughter offences. Relevant cases are highlighted with a summary of the main facts and judgments.
Chapter
10. Fraud
David Ormerod and John Child
This chapter deals with fraud, an offence under section 1 of the Fraud Act 2006 (FA 2006). It first discusses the central fraud offence, which can be committed by false representation, failure to disclose information, and/or abuse of position. The chapter then moves to consider related offences of obtaining services dishonestly and possession of articles for use in frauds, along with other fraud and deception offences. Finally, the chapter outlines potential options for legal reform concerning the drafting of FA 2006, fraud and the irrelevance of results, and distinguishing theft and fraud; as well as the potential application of fraud offences within a problem question. Relevant cases are highlighted throughout, with brief summaries of the main facts and judgments.
Chapter
12. Parties to crime
David Ormerod and John Child
This chapter examines the criminal liability of parties to a crime. Where D involves herself in the crime of another, and that crime is completed, D may not just be liable for her inchoate role, but may be additionally liable as an accomplice. As such, she is labelled and punished in the same way as the principal. This chapter begins with an overview of the current law of complicity and the circumstances where uncertainty can emerge in determining whether D is a principal or an accomplice. It then considers the elements of complicity by aiding, abetting, counselling, or procuring; the abolition of complicity by joint enterprise; the relationship between complicity and inchoate liability; and available defences. It outlines options for legal reform concerning complicity and the potential application of complicity within a problem question. Relevant cases are highlighted throughout the chapter, with brief summaries of the main facts and judgments.
Chapter
13. Denials of an offence
David Ormerod and John Child
This chapter deals with the rules on denials of an offence, a denial of one or more actus reus or mens rea elements. In particular, it considers three sets of rules relating to the denial of an offence: intoxication, sane automatism, and insanity. As well as discussing how each of these rules can be used by D to avoid liability, the chapter also focuses on how circumstances of ‘prior fault’ can be used by the prosecution to substitute for missing mens rea elements so as to construct liability. It also outlines potential options for legal reform concerning intoxication, sane automatism, and insanity, and concludes by considering how denials of offending based on intoxication, automatism, and insanity should be applied to problem facts. Relevant cases are highlighted throughout the chapter, with brief summaries of the main facts and judgments.
