Corporate charges for phone hacking?

An interesting piece appeared on The Guardian website tonight about possible charges against former News International directors under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA). Section 79 of RIPA (below) specifically refers to the criminal liability of directors relating to crimes committed by the "body corporate". Section 79 got mentioned in a few news stories when the hacking scandal exploded last July, but there hasn't been a lot of focus on it since. Then the culpability of News International directors did briefly get an oblique reference in Sue Akers evidence right at the end of the Leveson Inquiry hearings.

I suppose the three people you might think most at risk, in descending order are Rebekah Brooks, Les Hinton and James Murdoch. Brooks is suspected of knowing about hacking, but I suppose there's a question as to whether it's worth hitting her with a corporate as well as individual charges. Les Hinton was CCed on the Goodman letter where he sprayed about the allegations about others' involvement in hacking (others who are now, it ought to be noted, being charged under RIPA). And Murdoch obviously signed off the Taylor settlement and then failed to notice any wrong when the Guardian splashed on it in 2009.

There's enough there to worry a few people. More generally, I suspect that a corporate conviction under RIPA might go down quite well with News International hacks who feel they have been thrown to the wolves to save the management (and one director in particular). It would also demonstrate that we are serious about corporate culpability. Worth keeping an eye on.

79 Criminal liability of directors etc.(1)Where an offence under any provision of this Act other than a provision of Part III is committed by a body corporate and is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of—
(a)a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body corporate, or
(b)any person who was purporting to act in any such capacity,
he (as well as the body corporate) shall be guilty of that offence and liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
(2)Where an offence under any provision of this Act other than a provision of Part III—
(a)is committed by a Scottish firm, and
(b)is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of, a partner of the firm,
he (as well as the firm) shall be guilty of that offence and liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
(3)In this section “director”, in relation to a body corporate whose affairs are managed by its members, means a member of the body corporate.