Legal Definition of Fraud in the Australian Capital Territory.

Fraud, or defrauding someone or an organisation, is a type of criminal offence that is generally understood by everyone. The scale of the fraud can vary quite widely from a very minor amount of money to large scale defrauding of a large corporations.

If you have been charged with fraud, it’s important for you to familiarise yourself with the laws surrounding fraud and to obtain expert legal advice so you know where you stand.

To begin, let’s first talk about what fraud really means in the legal sense.

The Legal Meaning of Fraud

In Welham v DPP [1961] AC 103, defrauding was explained by Lord Radcliffe to require “a person as its object: that is, defrauding involves doing something to someone. Although in the nature of things it is almost invariably associated with the obtaining of an advantage for the person who commits the fraud, it is the effect upon the person who is the object of the fraud that ultimately determines its meaning. ”

In the Australian Capital Territory, fraud is a criminal act that can involve a few different types of major offences under the Australian Capital Territory laws, including:

1. Obtaining the property of another by means of deception

This is an act of dishonestly obtaining someone else’s property, through deception, with the intention to permanently deprive them of their ownership. The penalty for this type of activity is a maximum of 1,000 penalty units, 10 years of imprisonment, or both.

2. Obtaining a financial advantage by means of deception

This is an act of dishonestly obtaining a temporary or permanent financial advantage of another party through deception. It carries the same maximum penalty of 1,000 penalty units, 10 years of imprisonment, or both.

3. General Dishonesty

This is an act that is defined as doing something with the intention of dishonestly obtaining a gain from someone else, with that someone else being the Australian Capital Territory. The maximum penalty for this offence is 500 penalty units, 5 years of imprisonment, or both.

4. Conspiring to defraud

This is an act of conspiring with someone else with the intention of dishonestly obtaining a gain from a third person. The maximum penalty for this charge is 1,000 penalty units, 10 years of imprisonment, or both.

Deception can include an intentional or reckless deception, whether by words or other conduct, and whether as to fact or [the] law .” This can include the act of misleading a person or organization about the true intentions of a transaction, as well as using technology to perform unauthorised transfers.

So, what does this all mean?

What we observe from these laws is that the terms of what is a fraud or defrauding someone are broad in their meaning. A financial advantage is also defined broadly. The meaning of the word deception could cover similarly numerous situations.

This means that the law regarding fraud, and whether a fraud has actually been committed, is very complicated. The prosecution bears the onus of proving that you are guilty of fraud beyond a reasonable doubt. To do so can be very technical and complex. Choosing a lawyer who is well-versed with the pertinent legislation and the art of criminal defence is the best course of action.

Conclusion

To summarise, fraud is a highly technical criminal offence that carries with it a hefty punishment. However, it might be challenging to differentiate between what constitutes fraud and what doesn’t, so we advise that you speak with a criminal defence lawyer urgently in order to get advice about what to do next if you have been charged with fraud.

We are leading criminal lawyers serving Canberra, Wollongong, Queanbeyan, Goulburn and surrounding locations in Australia. Get in touch with us if you have any other questions. We’re happy to help.

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