ABSTRACT
Introduction This chapter covers the development of the law relating to the criminal liability of secondary parties (or accomplices) to an offence. Whilst a defendant may not actually perform that act which results in the criminal offence charged, they may have participated in the offence to an extent great enough to afford them liability for it. The general rule is that secondary parties to a crime can be liable to the same degree as the principal offender (the person who actually commits the acts required for the substantive offence) and may be punished to the same degree, whether or not this appropriately reflects the extent of their contribution to it. Indeed, Concannon (2002) mounted a challenge to this rule under the Human Rights Act 1998, claiming that it breached his right to a fair trial under Art 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The Court of Appeal were dismissive of the challenge though, on the basis that Art 6 allows a defendant to complain of procedural unfairness in English law, but not to complain of unfairness resulting from the substantive criminal law.
