The defendant received price-sensitive information. He was acquitted of ‘obtaining’ the information, the judge finding that he had done nothing positive to acquire it. On appeal the court held that no such act was required,
Held: Nothing further was required than to have received the information, to be found to have obtained it. Parliament must have intended the wider meaning to include ‘coming into possession of’. The court followed three steps in interpreting the provision. The literal approach was insufficient, and nor was the purposive approach. They applied the Black-Clawson approach in resolving the ambiguity found in the statute. Nevertheless the defendant was acquitted.
Judges:
Lord Lowry
Citations:
[1989] 2 WLR 729
Statutes:
Company Securities (Insider Dealing) Act 1985 1(3)
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Citing:
Appeal from – Attorney-General’s Reference (No 1 of 1988) CACD 19-Oct-1988
The defendant received price-sensitive information. The Attorney-General appealed his acquittal, the judge having directed the jury that in order to have ‘obtained’ information within the subsection, he must have carried out some act, that he had . .
Applied – Director of Public Prosecutions v Ottewell HL 1968
The antecedent criminal history of an offender is a factor which may be taken into account in determining the sentence to be imposed, but it cannot be given such weight as to lead to the imposition of a penalty which is disproportionate to the . .
Applied – Black-Clawson International Ltd v Papierwerke Waldhof Aschaffenburg AG HL 5-Mar-1975
Statute’s Mischief May be Inspected
The House considered limitations upon them in reading statements made in the Houses of Parliament when construing a statute.
Held: It is rare that a statute can be properly interpreted without knowing the legislative object. The courts may . .
Cited by:
Appealed to – Attorney-General’s Reference (No 1 of 1988) CACD 19-Oct-1988
The defendant received price-sensitive information. The Attorney-General appealed his acquittal, the judge having directed the jury that in order to have ‘obtained’ information within the subsection, he must have carried out some act, that he had . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Company, Crime
Updated: 30 April 2022; Ref: scu.198912
