Legalize / Ireland / Act

Criminal Justice (Corruption Offences) Act 2018

Type Act

Publication 2018-06-05

State In force

Source Irish Statute Book

Reform history JSON API

PART 1 Preliminary and General

1. Short title and commencement

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Criminal Justice (Corruption Offences) Act 2018.

(2) This Act shall come into operation on such day or days as the Minister may by order or orders appoint either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.

2. Interpretation

2. (1) In this Act—

“company” means a company formed and registered under the Companies Act 2014 or an existing company within the meaning of that Act;

“consideration” includes valuable consideration of any kind;

“corruptly” includes acting with an improper purpose personally or by influencing another person, whether—

(a) by means of making a false or misleading statement,

(b) by means of withholding, concealing, altering or destroying a document or other information, or

“court”—

(a) in relation to the State, includes a court-martial, and

(b) in relation to any other state, includes a military court by whatever name called;

“director” means—

(a) in relation to a company, a director within the meaning of the Companies Act 2014, and

(b) in the case of an Irish public body that is not a company, a person who is a member of the body or a member of a board by whatever name called that controls, manages or administers the body;

“enactment” means a statute or an instrument made under a power conferred by statute;

“foreign official” means—

(a) a member of the government of any other state,

(b) a member of a parliament, regional or national, of any other state,

(c) a member of the European Parliament other than a person who is such a member by virtue of the European Parliament Elections Act 1997,

(d) a member of the Court of Auditors of the European Union,

(e) a member of the European Commission,

(f) a public prosecutor in any other state,

(g) a judge of a court in any other state, including a coroner’s court by whatever name called,

(h) a judge of a court established under an international agreement to which the State is a party,

(i) a member of a jury in court proceedings (whether criminal or civil), including an inquest in relation to the death of a person, in any other state,

(j) an arbitrator, including any member of an arbitral board, panel or tribunal, in arbitral proceedings not governed by the law of the State,

(k) a member of, or any other person employed by, or acting for or on behalf of, an organisation or body established under an international agreement to which the State is a party,

(l) any other person employed by or acting on behalf of the public administration of any other state, including a person under the direct or indirect control of the government of such a state, or

(m) a member of, or any other person employed by, or acting for or on behalf of, an international organisation established by an international agreement between states to which the State is not a party;

“Irish official” means—

(a) a member of Dáil Éireann,

(b) a member of Seanad Éireann,

(d) the Attorney General,

(e) the Comptroller and Auditor General,

(f) the Director of Public Prosecutions,

(g) a judge of a court in the State,

(h) an arbitrator, including any member of an arbitral board, panel or tribunal, in arbitral proceedings governed by the law of the State,

(i) a member of a jury in court proceedings (whether civil or criminal) in the State or in an inquest held under the Coroners Act 1962,

(j) an officer, director, employee or member of an Irish public body (including a member of a local authority),

(k) any other office holder appointed under an enactment who is remunerated out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas and who is independent in the performance of the functions of that office, or

(l) any other person employed by or acting for or on behalf of the public administration of the State;

“Irish public body” shall be construed in accordance with Schedule 1;

“local authority” means a county, city or city and county council within the meaning of section 2 of the Local Government Act 2001;

“Minister” means the Minister for Justice and Equality;

“official” means an Irish official or a foreign official;

“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Minister under section 3;

“seized property” shall be construed in accordance with section 20;

“state”, in relation to a state other than the State, includes—

(a) a territory, whether in the state or outside it, for whose external relations the state or its government is wholly or partly responsible,

(b) a subdivision of the government of the state, and

“subsidiary” has the meaning it has in section 7 of the Companies Act 2014.

(2) A reference in this Act to an act includes a reference to an omission and a reference in this Act to the commission or doing of an act includes a reference to the making of an omission.

3. Regulations

3. (1) The Minister may by regulations provide for any matter referred to in this Act as prescribed or to be prescribed.

(2) Regulations under this section may contain such incidental, supplementary and consequential provisions as appear to the Minister to be necessary or expedient for the purposes of the regulations.

(3) Every regulation made by the Minister under this Act shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the regulation is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House sits after the regulation is laid before it, the regulation shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

4. Repeals

4. The enactments specified in Schedule 2 are repealed to the extent specified in column (3) of that Schedule.

PART 2 Corruption Offences

5. Active and passive corruption

5. (1) A person who, either directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or with another person—

(a) corruptly offers, or

(b) corruptly gives or agrees to give,

a gift, consideration or advantage to a person as an inducement to, or reward for, or otherwise on account of, any person doing an act in relation to his or her office, employment, position or business shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) A person who, either directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or with another person—

(a) corruptly requests,

(b) corruptly accepts or obtains, or

for himself or herself or for any other person, a gift, consideration or advantage as an inducement to, or reward for, or otherwise on account of, any person doing an act in relation to his or her office, employment, position or business shall be guilty of an offence.

6. Active and passive trading in influence

6. (1) A person who, either directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or with another person—

(a) corruptly offers, or

(b) corruptly gives or agrees to give,

a gift, consideration or advantage in order to induce another person to exert an improper influence over an act of an official in relation to the office, employment, position or business of the official shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) A person who, either directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or with another person—

(a) corruptly requests,

(b) corruptly accepts or obtains, or

for himself or herself or for any other person, a gift, consideration or advantage on account of a person promising or asserting the ability to improperly influence an official to do an act in relation to the office, employment, position or business of the official shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) For the purposes of subsections (1) and (2), it is immaterial whether or not—

(a) the alleged ability to exert an improper influence existed,

(b) the influence is exerted,

(d) the intended or actual recipient of the gift, consideration or advantage is the person whom it is intended to induce to exert influence.

7. Corruption in relation to office, employment, position or business

7. (1) An Irish official who, either directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or with another person, does an act in relation to his or her office, employment, position or business for the purpose of corruptly obtaining a gift, consideration or advantage for himself or herself or for any other person, shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) An Irish official who uses confidential information obtained in the course of his or her office, employment, position or business for the purpose of corruptly obtaining a gift, consideration or advantage for himself or herself or for any other person shall be guilty of an offence.

8. Giving gift, consideration or advantage that may be used to facilitate offence under this Act

8. A person who gives a gift, consideration or advantage to another person where the first-mentioned person knows, or ought reasonably to know, that the gift, consideration or advantage, or a part of it, will be used to facilitate the commission of an offence under this Act shall be guilty of an offence.

9. Creating or using false document

9. (1) A person who, either directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or with another person, corruptly creates or uses a document, that the person knows or believes to contain a statement which is false or misleading in a material particular, with the intention of inducing another person to do an act in relation to his or her office, employment, position or business to the prejudice of the last-mentioned person or another person shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) In this section—

“document” includes—

(a) a book, record or other written or printed material in any form (including in any electronic device),

(b) a map, plan or drawing,

(c) a disc, tape or other mechanical or electronic device in which data other than visual images are embodied so as to be capable, with or without the aid of some other mechanical or electronic equipment, of being reproduced from the disc, tape or other device,

(d) a film, disc, tape or other mechanical or electronic device in which visual images are embodied so as to be capable, with or without the aid of some other mechanical or electronic equipment, of being reproduced from the film, disc, tape or other device, and

(e) a copy of any thing that falls within paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d);

“electronic device” includes any device which uses any electrical, digital, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, biometric or photonic means, or other forms of related technology, or any combination thereof, to store or transmit data or both to store and transmit data.

10. Intimidation

10. (1) A person who, either directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or with another person, threatens harm to a person with the intention of corruptly influencing that person or another person to do an act in relation to the person’s office, employment, position or business shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) In this section “harm” includes loss, disadvantage or injury of any kind.

PART 3 Corruption Occurring Partly in or outside State

11. Corruption occurring partly in State

11. A person may be tried in the State for an offence under this Act if any one or more of the acts alleged to constitute the offence were committed—

(a) in the State,

(b) on board an Irish ship within the meaning of section 33 of the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Act 2014, or

notwithstanding that the other acts alleged to constitute the offence were committed outside the State.

12. Corruption occurring outside State

12. (1) Subject to subsection (2), where a person (in this section referred to as the “person concerned”) does an act in a place outside the State that, if done in the State, would constitute an offence under—

(a) section 5, 6, 7, 8 or 18(1), or

(b) section 9 concerning the creation or use of a false accounting, auditing or financial document,

the person concerned shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to the penalty to which the person concerned would have been liable if the person concerned had done that act in the State.

(2)Subsection (1) shall apply where—

(a) the act is committed on board an Irish ship within the meaning of section 33 of the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Act 2014,

(b) the act is committed on an aircraft registered in the State, or

(i) an Irish official acting in his or her capacity as an Irish official,

(ii) an Irish citizen,

(iii) an individual who has had his or her principal residence in the State for the period of 12 months immediately preceding the alleged commission of the offence concerned,

(iv) a company, or

(v) any other body corporate established under the law of the State.

(3) Where a European Union official working for an institution of the European Union or a body set up in accordance with the treaties governing the European Union which has its headquarters in the State does an act in a place outside the State that—

(a) if done in the State, would constitute an offence under section 5, and

(b) constitutes an offence under the law of the place where it was done,

he or she shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to the penalty to which he or she would have been liable if he or she had done that act in the State.

(4) Where a person does an act in a place outside the State that—

(a) if done in the State, would constitute an offence under subsection (1) of section 5,

(b) constitutes an offence under the law of the place where it was done,and

(i) a national official of a Member State, or

(ii) a member of—

(I) the European Commission,

(II) the European Parliament,

(III) the Court of Justice of the European Union, or

(IV) the Court of Auditors of the European Union,

the first-mentioned person shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to the penalty to which he or she would have been liable if he or she had done that act in the State.

(5) In this section—

“Convention” means the Convention drawn up on the basis of Article K.3(2)(c) of the Treaty on European Union on the fight against corruption involving officials of the European Communities or officials of Member States of the European Union done at Brussels on 26 May 1997;

“European Union official” has the same meaning as “Community official” in Article 1(b) of the Convention;

“national official”—

(a) in relation to a Member State other than the State, has the meaning it has in Article 1(c) of the Convention, and

(b) in relation to the State, means an Irish official;

“treaties governing the European Union” has the meaning it has in the European Communities Act 1972.

13. Location of proceedings relating to offences committed outside State

13. Proceedings for an offence under section 12 may be taken in any place in the State and the offence may for all incidental purposes be treated as having been committed in that place.

PART 4 Presumptions Relating to Corruption

14. Presumption of corrupt gift, consideration or advantage

14. (1) Where, in any proceedings against a person for an offence under section 5, 6, 7 or 8, it is proved that—

(a) a gift, consideration or advantage has been—

(i) given to an official or a connected person of an official,

(ii) given to a person while intended to be for the benefit of an official or a connected person of an official, or

(iii) received by or on behalf of an official or a connected person of an official,

and

(b) the person who gave the gift, consideration or advantage, or on whose behalf the gift, consideration or advantage was given, had an interest in the discharge by the official of any of the functions to which this subsection applies by virtue of subsection (3),

the gift, consideration or advantage shall be presumed to have been given and received corruptly as an inducement to, or reward for, or otherwise on account of, that official doing an act in relation to the performance of any of those functions, unless the contrary is proved.

(2) Where, in any proceedings against a person for an offence under section 5, 6, 7 or 8, it is proved that—

(a) a gift, consideration or advantage has been—

(i) given to an official or a connected person of an official,

(ii) given to a person while intended to be for the benefit of an official or a connected person of an official, or

(iii) received by or on behalf of an official or a connected person of an official,

and

(b) the official performed or omitted to perform any of the functions to which this subsection applies by virtue of subsection (3) so as to give rise to an undue benefit or advantage to the person who gave the gift, consideration or advantage, or on whose behalf the gift, consideration or advantage was given,

(3) Subsections (1) and (2) apply to functions of officials relating to the following matters or under the following enactments:

(a) the awarding, granting, issuing, sanctioning, renewal, refusal, withdrawal or revocation of—

(i) a tender for goods or services,

(ii) a contract,

(iii) a grant, payment or loan, or a credit facility of any kind,

(iv) a licence, permit, certificate, warrant, authorisation or similar permission or instrument, or

(v) a passport, visa or immigration permission or status;

(b) the making of a decision regarding—

(i) the appointment of a person to an office, position or employment,

(ii) the acquisition, letting or sale of any land or other property by any means, or

This document does not substitute the official text published in the Irish Statute Book. We accept no responsibility for any inaccuracies arising from the transcription of the original into this format.