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Building Act 2004

Miscellaneous provisions - Other offences and criminal proceedings - Proceedings for offences generally

386: Liability of principal for acts of agents

You could also call this:

“When someone breaks the law while working for you, you might get in trouble too.”

If someone breaks the law while working for you, you might get in trouble too. This is true even if the person breaking the law is just helping you for a short time or is your employee.

You could be held responsible in the same way as if you had broken the law yourself. This doesn’t mean the person who actually did the wrong thing is off the hook - they can still get in trouble too.

If you’re accused of being responsible for someone else’s wrongdoing, you can defend yourself. If you’re an individual, you need to show that you didn’t know about the wrongdoing and couldn’t have been expected to know. Or, you need to prove that you did everything you could to stop it from happening.

If you’re a company, you need to show that your directors and managers didn’t know and couldn’t have been expected to know about the wrongdoing. Or, you need to prove that your company did everything it could to prevent it.

In all cases, you also need to show that you tried your best to fix any problems caused by the wrongdoing.

If a company breaks the law, its directors and managers can get in trouble too. This happens if they allowed the wrongdoing to happen, or if they knew about it (or should have known) and didn’t do everything they could to stop it.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM309038.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Criminal law
Work and jobs > Worker rights
Business > Industry rules
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385: Application of section 381 to Crown organisation, or

“The District Court can stop a government group from doing something, just like it can for other people or companies.”

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387: Liability for acts of employees or agents of Crown organisations, or

“A Crown organisation can be held responsible when its workers do something wrong, but has ways to defend itself.”

Part 5 Miscellaneous provisions
Other offences and criminal proceedings: Proceedings for offences generally

386Liability of principal for acts of agents

  1. The consequence specified in subsection (2) applies if a person (person A) commits an offence against this Act while acting as an agent (including a contractor) or employee of another person (person B).

  2. Person B is liable under this Act in the same manner and to the same extent as if person B had personally committed the offence.

  3. The liability of person B under subsection (2) is without prejudice to the liability of person A.

  4. Despite subsection (2), if proceedings are brought under that subsection, it is a defence if the defendant proves,—

  5. in the case of a natural person (including a partner in a firm), that—
    1. he or she did not know nor could reasonably be expected to have known that the offence was to be or was being committed; or
      1. he or she took all reasonable steps to prevent the commission of the offence; or
      2. in the case of a body corporate, that—
        1. neither the directors nor any person involved in the management of the body corporate knew or could reasonably be expected to have known that the offence was to be or was being committed; or
          1. the body corporate took all reasonable steps to prevent the commission of the offence; and
          2. in all cases, that the defendant took all reasonable steps to remedy any effects of the act or omission giving rise to the offence.

            1. If a body corporate is convicted of an offence against this Act, every director and every person concerned in the management of the body corporate is guilty of the same offence if it is proved—

            2. that the act that constituted the offence took place with that person's authority, permission, or consent; and
              1. that he or she knew or could reasonably be expected to have known that the offence was to be or was being committed and failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent or stop it.

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