Theft Act 1968

The Theft Act 1968 comprehensively reformed the law of theft and related offences in England and Wales, replacing the complex and archaic Larceny Act 1916. The Act was based on the recommendations of the Criminal Law Revision Committee’s Eighth Report (1966). It created a simplified and principled definition of theft and established a coherent framework for property offences. The Act defined theft as the dishonest appropriation of property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it. The Act also created the modern offences of robbery, burglary, handling stolen goods, and obtaining services by deception.

Legal area: Criminal law defines conduct prohibited by the state and prescribes punishments for those who engage in such conduct, serving to maintain public order and protect individuals and property.

Citation: Theft Act 1968 (1968 c 60)

Full text: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1968/60

Key Provisions

• Section 1: Basic definition of theft
• Section 2: Definition of dishonesty (Ghosh test, later replaced by Ivey v Genting Casinos)
• Section 3: Appropriation (including later assumption of rights of owner)
• Section 4: Definition of property (including things in action and intangible property)
• Section 5: Belonging to another (including trust property and obligations to retain)
• Section 8: Robbery defined as theft accompanied by force or threat of force
• Section 9: Burglary (entering as trespasser with intent to steal, inflict GBH, or do unlawful damage)
• Section 15: Obtaining property by deception (later replaced by Fraud Act 2006)

Significance

The Theft Act 1968 is one of the most frequently applied criminal statutes. Its definition of theft has been extensively interpreted by the courts, particularly the meaning of dishonesty. The House of Lords in R v Ghosh (1982) established a two-stage test for dishonesty that was later overruled by the Supreme Court in Ivey v Genting Casinos (2017), which replaced it with an objective standard. The Act’s deception offences were repealed and replaced by the Fraud Act 2006. The Act has been amended by the Criminal Justice Act 1991, the Theft (Amendment) Act 1996, the Fraud Act 2006, and the Serious Crime Act 2007.