Liability of officers for corporate offences CA 1989 s.103
Under CA 1989 s. 103, officers of a body corporate may be guilty of an offence if the company's offence was with their consent, connivance, or neglect.
This section applies where any offence under this Act is committed by a body corporate. If the offence is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of any director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body corporate, or any person who was purporting to act in any such capacity, he (as well as the body corporate) shall be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
Text in force at .
Source: legislation.gov.uk — The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk), reproduced under licence Open Government Licence v3.0.
What it actually says
This section applies when a company or other body corporate commits an offence under the Children Act 1989. If the offence was committed with the agreement or knowledge of, or due to the carelessness of, a director, manager, secretary, or similar officer, then that person is also guilty of the same offence.
The law uses "consent" to mean they agreed to it, "connivance" to mean they turned a blind eye, and "neglect" to mean they failed to take reasonable steps. This also covers anyone acting as if they were such an officer, even if not officially appointed.
The result is that the officer can be prosecuted and punished personally, in addition to any punishment the company may receive.
When it applies
- A director of a children's home agrees to a policy that violates safety regulations, and the home is charged with an offence.
- A manager of a nursery fails to check staff qualifications, and the nursery is prosecuted for employing unqualified staff in breach of the Act.
- A secretary of a fostering agency fails to report a serious incident to the authorities, and the agency is charged with an offence under the Act.
- A person who acts as a manager of a play scheme, though not officially appointed, neglects to ensure compliance with court orders, and the scheme is prosecuted.
What this section does not say
- The section does not make all employees of a company personally liable for corporate offences.
- It does not create a separate offence; it only attaches liability to officers when the company commits an offence.
- It does not apply to officers who had no knowledge, did not consent, and were not negligent.
- It does not cover offences under other Acts, only those under the Children Act 1989.
That's the law. Now let's settle your problem.
Say what is happening. A neutral mediator hears your side and the other party's, and walks you both to a written agreement. In the advanced settings you can ask for the decision to be reasoned on the Acts of Parliament that apply in England and Wales.
Or open a session directly and invite the other party.
We copy this text from the official publisher and re-check it against that source on every page load, but we cannot guarantee it is complete, current or free of error, and we accept no liability for any reliance on it. An amendment can take effect before a consolidation catches up. The publisher's own copy is linked below; where the two differ, it is the official one that counts.
This page reproduces the text of CA 1989 s. 103 in force at the date shown and explains it in general terms. It is not legal advice and takes no account of the circumstances of your case, which can change the answer completely. For a live dispute, for limitation periods, and before taking any step in court, consult a qualified lawyer in England and Wales.