Corporate Manslaughter Act – First Case

We always thought it would take some time before an organisation would be charged under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act. Well now, a year after the Act came into force, we are seeing the first company being taken to court.

This case is not on the scale of high profile disasters of the past, such as the Zeebrugge Ferry disaster, the Bradford City fire or the Southall and Paddington rail crashes. It affects a small company in Gloucestershire involved with Geotechnical investigations (examining the behaviour of earth materials for the civil engineering industry).

The case follows the death, in September 2008, of a 27 year old geologist, who was inside a pit taking soil samples as part of a site survey,

While the man was in the pit, the sides collapsed and he was crushed to death.

In addition to the charge under the Corporate Manslaughter Act, a director of the company is also facing a charge of Gross Negligence Manslaughter, as well as an offence under section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work Act.

A reviewing lawyer for the Crown Prosecution Service stated:

"Under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 an organisation is guilty of corporate manslaughter if the way in which its activities are managed or organised causes a death and amounts to a gross breach of a duty of care to the person who died.

A substantial part of the breach must have been in the way activities were organised by senior management.

I have concluded that there is sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction for this offence."

You can read more details about this case on the website of the Crown Prosecution Service at http://www.cps.gov.uk/news/press_releases/124_09/

Although a small organisation, this case is receiving widespread publicity for the simple reason that it is the first charge to be brought under the Act. However, there are a significant number of other UK work-related deaths under investigation that occurred since the Act came into force.

We will be monitoring and reporting on the outcome of this case and future cases as they are announced.

Meanwhile, it would be prudent for every organisation to ensure their safety systems are up to standard.

EDP Consultants offer efficient and cost-effective audits of health and safety systems. Don't be the next company to have your name over all the national press. As well as the impact on your reputation, it could result in unlimited fines that can wipe out your profit.