Gross Negligence Manslaughter Remade

Abstract

Gross negligence manslaughter has never been considered by the UK Supreme Court. It was last considered by the House of Lords in Adomako (1995). That decision identified four elements of the offence: duty, breach, causation, and grossness of breach. Since then, the Court of Appeal has considered, clarified, and tweaked all four elements of the offence, as well as adding a new element: that the breach must give rise to a serious and obvious risk of death. This article traces and evaluates these changes, in comparative context, considering possibilities for reform.