Theft

Question 1

D may be liable for theft, defined in

Answer 1

section 1 of the theft act 1986, as the dishonest appropriation of property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it.

Question 2

The actus reus is the

Answer 2

dishonest appropriation of property belonging to another.

Question 3

appropriation can be a

Answer 3

straightforward outright taking. also, under s.3(1) it means the assumption of the rights of the owner, and can take place even when the property is innocently acquired, if D then keeps/deals with it.

Question 4

IF RELEVANT: appropriation can take place even with consent,

Answer 4

if there is deception, as in lawrence.

Question 5

IF RELEVANT: appropriation can take place even when there is a gift

Answer 5

made with consent and without deception, if it is obtained through coercion, as in hinks.

Question 6

IF RELEVANT: appropriation can take place even if d leaves the property behind

Answer 6

having taken it, as in corcoran and anderton.

Question 7

IF RELEVANT: appropriation can take place through

Answer 7

label swapping, as in morris.

Question 8

Here appropriation takes place outright and under

Answer 8

s.3(1) when…

Question 9

under s.4(1), property can be

Answer 9

tangible such as personal property, money and real property (eg land and buildings) or intangible such as things in action (eg cheque, debt, bank account) and patents.

Question 10

things that don’t constitute property include under

Answer 10

s.4(3) mushrooms, flowers, foliage and fruit that has been picked from the wild for reward or sale,

Question 11

under s.4(4)

Answer 11

wild creatures unless in captivity, confidential information as in oxford v moss, and bodies/body parts unless used for exhibition/teaching purposes as in kelly and lindsay.

Question 12

here the property

Answer 12

is…

Question 13

under s.5(1) property belonging to another means

Answer 13

the victim has possession or control of it.

Question 14

IF RELEVANT: under s.5(3) if a person is under an obligation to retain and deal with property in a particular way

Answer 14

that property is regarded as belonging to another, as in davidge v bunnett, and hall.

Question 15

IF RELEVANT: under s.5(4) if a person is given something by mistake,

Answer 15

keeping it is keeping property belonging to another as the victim has a ‘proprietary interest’ as in webster.

Question 16

IF RELEVANT: an owner can be convicted of

Answer 16

stealing their own property, if it is temporarily in the possession of another, as in turner.

Question 17

IF RELEVANT: a person can be in control of property even though they

Answer 17

do not know it is there, such as abandoned property as in woodman.

Question 18

here, the property did belong to another

Answer 18

because…

Question 19

for the mens rea, under s.2 d must be

Answer 19

dishonest. the 2 stage test established in ivey v genting casinos is used. firstly the jury must decide what was the actual knowledge or belief of D as to the facts, and secondly, in that context, the jury must decide whether d’s behaviour would be regarded as dishonest by the reasonable, ordinary, decent person.

Question 20

here a reasonable ordinary, decent person would view d’s actions as

Answer 20

dishonest because…

Question 21

a person’s appropriation will not be dishonest if under s.2(1)(a)

Answer 21

there was the honest belief that he has a legal right to it, as in small

Question 22

under s.2(1)(b)

Answer 22

there was an honest belief that the owner would consent,

Question 23

under s.2(1)(c)

Answer 23

there was was an honest belief that the owner cannot be found by taking reasonable steps. the honest belief does not have to be reasonable belief, just honest.

Question 24

here d honestly believed that

Answer 24

v would consent to him using his…

Question 25

under s.2(2),

Answer 25

d may be still considered dishonest if he is willing to pay for the property at a later date

Question 26

here although we do not know for certain

Answer 26

it is unlikely d was willing to pay v at a later date, but will be considered dishonest if he did

Question 27

under s.6(1) d must have an

Answer 27

intention to permanently deprive, which means an intention to dispose of or treat as your own, as in dpp v lavender.

Question 28

IF RELEVANT: an intention to sell or ransom property back to v

Answer 28

will be an IPD, as in raphael

Question 29

IF RELEVANT: intention to replace property will not be an

Answer 29

IPD provided it is absolutely identical as in velumyl

Question 30

IF RELEVANT: an intention to remove the value from the property will not be an

Answer 30

IPD, as in lloyd

Question 31

IF RELEVANT: an intention to abandon the property will not be an

Answer 31

IPD unless the intention was to change it so as to lose all of its value, as in mitchell

Question 32

IF RELEVANT: a conditional intention to deprive is not an

Answer 32

IPD, as in easom, but it will result in a conviction for attempted theft.

Question 33

IF RELEVANT: under s.6(2), there is an IPD where d intends to part with the property,

Answer 33

to be returned under a condition which may not be able to be peformed, as in fernandes

Question 34

here there is intent to permanently

Answer 34

deprive because…

Question 35

TO CONCLUDE,

Answer 35

D will be guilty of theft.