SQE1 Criminal Law — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under English criminal law, what are the two elements that must generally be proved to establish criminal liability?
- Motive and opportunity
- Actus reus and mens rea (Correct answer)
- Causation and intent
- Harm and recklessness
Correct answer: Actus reus and mens rea
Criminal liability generally requires proof of both the actus reus (the guilty act or conduct) and the mens rea (the guilty mind or mental element). This fundamental principle is expressed in the maxim 'actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea'.
Question 2: What is the mens rea for murder under English law?
- Intention to cause grievous bodily harm or kill (Correct answer)
- Recklessness as to causing death
- Negligence causing death
- Gross negligence leading to death
Correct answer: Intention to cause grievous bodily harm or kill
The mens rea for murder is malice aforethought, which encompasses either an intention to kill or an intention to cause grievous bodily harm (GBH). This was confirmed in R v Vickers [1957] and R v Cunningham [1982].
Question 3: Which partial defence to murder, if successful, reduces the conviction to voluntary manslaughter?
- Self-defence
- Automatism
- Loss of control under the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 (Correct answer)
- Duress
Correct answer: Loss of control under the Coroners and Justice Act 2009
Loss of control (replacing the old provocation defence) is a partial defence to murder under sections 54-56 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009. If successful, it reduces the conviction from murder to voluntary manslaughter.
Question 4: Under section 18 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, what must be proved regarding the defendant's mental state?
- Recklessness as to some harm
- Intention to cause grievous bodily harm or to resist arrest (Correct answer)
- Negligence
- Basic intent only
Correct answer: Intention to cause grievous bodily harm or to resist arrest
Section 18 (wounding or causing GBH with intent) requires proof of specific intent — either intent to cause GBH or intent to resist or prevent lawful apprehension. It is a specific intent offence carrying a maximum of life imprisonment.
Question 5: In English law, the defence of self-defence requires that the force used was:
- Proportionate to the threat, even if the defendant's perception of the threat was mistaken (Correct answer)
- The minimum force possible
- Only available if the defendant retreated first
- Authorised by a court order
Correct answer: Proportionate to the threat, even if the defendant's perception of the threat was mistaken
Self-defence under section 76 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 requires that the defendant genuinely believed force was necessary and that the force used was reasonable in the circumstances as the defendant believed them to be, even if that belief was mistaken.
Question 6: What is the legal effect of intoxication on mens rea for crimes of basic intent?
- Voluntary intoxication is always a complete defence
- Voluntary intoxication cannot negate the mens rea for basic intent offences (Correct answer)
- Involuntary intoxication is never a defence
- Intoxication automatically reduces the charge
Correct answer: Voluntary intoxication cannot negate the mens rea for basic intent offences
Following DPP v Majewski [1977], voluntary intoxication cannot be relied upon to negate the mens rea for basic intent offences (such as assault, battery, and s.47 ABH). It may only be relevant to specific intent offences like murder or theft.
SQE1 Criminal Law
Under English criminal law, what are the two elements that must generally be proved to establish criminal liability?