Rights statement: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/legal-studies/article/honest-cheat-a-timely-history-of-cheating-and-fraud-following-ivey-v-genting-casinos-uk-ltd-ta-crockfords-2017-uksc-67/05BAC39684734C56F79ACE0147714415 The final, definitive version of this article has been published in the Journal, Legal Studies, 40, (2), pp 252-268 2019, © 2019 Cambridge University Press.
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Final published version
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
<mark>Journal publication date</mark> | 1/06/2020 |
---|---|
<mark>Journal</mark> | Legal Studies |
Issue number | 2 |
Volume | 40 |
Number of pages | 17 |
Pages (from-to) | 252-268 |
Publication Status | Published |
Early online date | 14/01/20 |
<mark>Original language</mark> | English |
The UK Supreme Court took the opportunity in Ivey v Genting Casinos (UK) Ltd t/a Crockfords [2017] UKSC 67 to reverse the long-standing, but unpopular, test for dishonesty in R v Ghosh. It reduced the relevance of subjectivity in the test of dishonesty, and brought the civil and the criminal law approaches to dishonesty into line by adopting the test as laid down in Royal Brunei Airlines Sdn Bhd v Tan. This paper employs extensive legal historical research to demonstrate that the Supreme Court in Ivey was too quick to dismiss the significance of the historical roots of dishonesty. Through an innovative and comprehensive historical framework of fraud, this paper demonstrates that dishonesty has long been a central pillar of the actus reus of deceptive offences. The recognition of such significance permits us to situate the role of dishonesty in contemporary criminal property offences. This historical analysis further demonstrates that the Justices erroneously overlooked centuries of jurisprudence in their haste to unite civil and criminal law tests for dishonesty.