ECCTA: Expanding Corporate Criminal Liability In The UK

One of ECCTA’s most significant reforms was in relation to corporate criminal liability, which has now been extended much further under the Crime and Policing Act 2026.

Under ECCTA, a company could be criminally liable where a senior manager committed specific economic crimes (such as fraud, bribery or money laundering) while acting within their authority.

Under the Crime and Policing Act 2026, in force from 29 June 2026, the same principle now applies to all criminal offences, not just economic crime. This will enable prosecutors to attribute criminal liability to companies whenever a senior manager commits any offence within the scope of their authority.

The Senior Manager Test

Historically, the ability to prosecute companies for economic crimes required proving that those individuals at the very top of the company (the “controlling mind”) committed the offence.

ECCTA placed the attribution of liability for economic crimes on a statutory “senior manager” footing, where organisations can be held criminally liable when any "senior manager" commits a relevant offence while acting within their actual or apparent authority.

The revised “senior manager” test echoed the concepts established in the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 where a senior manager is defined by function rather than title, encompassing individuals who play a significant role in either:

1. Making decisions about how substantial parts of the organisation’s activities are managed or organised; or
2. Actually managing or implementing those activities.

This functional approach shifts the focus away from formal titles and towards the practical exercise of authority within an organisation, recognising the complexity of modern corporate structures where decision-making is often decentralised. The test does not rely on an individual’s job title; it is the question

Responsibility is no longer confined to the boardroom but extends to operational leadership, and prosecutors are no longer constrained by the limitations of the traditional “controlling mind and will” standard.

Crime and Policing Act 2026

The Crime and Policing Act 2026 (CPA 2026) expands the scope of corporate criminal liability to all offences in the UK. If a senior manager of a body corporate or partnership, acting within the actual or apparent scope of their authority, commits any offence, the organisation also commits the offence.

A Clear Shift

Overall, ECCTA signalled a clear shift in legislative expectations, with corporate accountability for economic crime extended beyond the board to encompass senior leadership across the organisation. The Crime and Policing Act 2026 confirms that senior manager attribution is no longer purely an economic crime reform, it is a feature of UK corporate criminal liability.