Perverting the course of justice

Perverting the course of justice, in English, Canadian (see article 139 of Canadian Criminal Code), and Irish law, is a criminal offence in which someone prevents justice from being served on himself or on another party. It is a common law offence carrying a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Perverting the course of justice can be any of three acts:

• Fabricating or disposing of evidence
• Intimidating or threatening a witness or juror
• Intimidating or threatening a judge

Also criminal are (1) conspiring with another to pervert the course of justice and (2) intending to pervert the course of justice.

Statutory versions of the offence exist in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. See, for example, Section 319 of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW),^[1] where the maximum penalty is 14 years' imprisonment.

England and Wales

Doing an act tending and intended to pervert the course of public justice^[2] is an offence under the common law of England and Wales.

This offence, and the subject matter of the related forms of criminal conspiracy, has been referred to as:

• Perverting the course of justice
• Interfering with the administration of justice
• Obstructing the administration of justice
• Obstructing the course of justice
• Defeating the due course of justice
• Defeating the ends of justice
• Effecting a public mischief^[3]

This proliferation of alternative names is "somewhat confusing".^[4]

This offence is also sometimes referred to as "attempting to pervert the course of justice". This is potentially misleading. An attempt to pervert the course of justice is a substantive common law offence and not an inchoate offence. It is not a form of the offence of attempt and it would be erroneous to charge it as being contrary to section 1(1) of the Criminal Attempts Act 1981.^[5]

High-profile convictions

• Jonathan Aitken
• Jeffrey Archer
• Marcus Einfeld, Australian judge
• John Humble, for the Wearside Jack hoax letters and tapes
• Bruce Hyman, the only barrister so convicted in 800 years
• Karen Matthews and Michael Donovan, who were involved in Shannon Matthews' abduction
• Nadine Milroy-Sloan, who knowingly falsely accused Neil Hamilton of rape
• Lionel Murphy, Justice of the High Court of Australia (later reversed on appeal)
• Ali Dizaei, former Metropolitan Police Commander

See also

• Perjury
• Compounding a felony
• Compounding treason
• Embracery
• Misprision of felony
• Misprision of treason
• Obstruction of justice
• Contempt of Court

References

• Perjury and Perversion of the Course of Justice Considered (PDF), a primer on the legal details of the offence

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ This name is used in the statement of offence in the form of indictment approved in R v Williams (K J) 92 Cr App R 158, [1991] Crim LR 205, CA
3. ^ The Law Commission. Criminal Law: Offences relating to the Administration of Justice. Working Paper No 62. HMSO. 1975. Paragraph 10 at page 6.
4. ^ Archbold Criminal Pleading, Evidence and Practice. 1999. Paragraph 28-23 at page 2261.
5. ^ R v Williams (K J) 92 Cr App R 158, [1991] Crim LR 205, CA