Charlotte O'Kane
Charlotte is a senior associate in the Litigation and Regulatory team in Pinsent Masons LLP and is involved in a broad variety of general commercial litigation and regulatory law.
She has appeared on behalf of clients in Sheriff Courts throughout Scotland. She advises on investigations by HSE, SEPA, and other regulators, improvement and prohibition notices, prosecutions, health, safety and environmental policy and incident response, and fatal accident inquiries.
Practice Area
Panel
- Scottish Panel
Qualified Year
- 2010
Membership
- Health and Safety Lawyers Association
- Notary Public
Qualifications
- BSc (Hons) Neuroscience (2005)
- LLB (2007)
- Diploma in Legal Practice (2008)
Education
- University of Glasgow (2000 - 2007)
- Glasgow Graduate School of Law
4 Contributions by Charlotte O'Kane
PRACTICE NOTES
Health and safety investigations in Scotland: regulators, inspector powers, interviews, enforcement notices and appeals, and COPFS prosecutions
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), established under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA 1974), is the principal regulator of health and safety law in Scotland. A distinct Scottish division within HSE works closely with the Crown Office of the Procurator Fiscal Service, supporting both the investigation and prosecution of health and safety offences in Scotland. The obligations placed on employers and workers by HSWA 1974 apply equally across England, Wales and Scotland.
For information on key health and safety offences, see the following Practice Notes below:
Safety and the risk to safety under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
Failure to carry out health and safety duties under HSWA 1974—offences
Directors’ duties for health and safety
Employees' duties to take reasonable care for health and safety at work
See also the Health and safety collection.
Basis of the HSE’s statutory powers
The HSE’s powers and duties derive from a suite of Acts and statutory instruments, including:
HSWA 1974
Nuclear Installations Act 1965
Control of Major Accident Hazards Regulations 2015, SI 2015/483
Mines and Quarries Act 1954
Activity Centres (Young Persons Safety) Act 1995
...
Corporate Crime
PRACTICE NOTES
Health and Safety Investigations, Enforcement and Prosecution in Scotland: Roles of Police Scotland, HSE and COPFS, Corporate Homicide and Fatal Accident Inquiries
Police Scotland and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service
Police Scotland (the Police) is the national policing body for Scotland, formed in April 2013. The service reports directly to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), Scotland’s sole public prosecutor, charged with prosecuting crime in the public interest and investigating all sudden or suspicious deaths. See Practice Note: The investigation and prosecution of criminal offences in Scotland.
Investigations into health and safety incidents in Scotland
Under section 18 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA 1974), the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is tasked with putting in place adequate arrangements to enforce health and safety legislation, thereby securing workers’ health, safety and welfare and protecting others, including the public, in meeting that duty. See Practice Notes: Health and safety investigations in Scotland and Powers of health and safety inspectors under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Specialist investigators, reporting agencies and prosecutors
In Scotland, the HSE operates as a Specialist Reporting Agency (SRA) to COPFS and holds the full powers conferred by HSWA 1974 for investigation. The HSE does not...
Corporate Crime
PRACTICE NOTES
Sentencing health and safety offences in Scotland: objectives, modes of trial, maximum penalties, sentencing factors, corporate/individual liability, plea discounts, Scottish Sentencing Council guidance, and victim surcharge
This Practice Note outlines how the Scottish criminal courts sentence health and safety offences. For guidance on the sentencing of health and safety offences in England and Wales, see Practice Notes: Sentencing organisations for health and safety offences and Sentencing individuals for health and safety offences. See also Practice Note: Health and safety fines over £1 million—tracker, which summarises UK prosecutions for health and safety offences that resulted in fines exceeding £1m being imposed.
Objectives of sentencing and punishment
The over-riding aims in such cases are:
to secure a safe environment for the public
to impose punishment that sufficiently reinforces that message to the offender, and
to deter would-be offenders
Where the offender is a corporate body (or similar), the message should be evident not only to those managing the company, but also to those who own it as shareholders. This does not mean a fine must always be so large that it impacts dividends or the share price. The amount of any financial penalty must, however, reflect both the degree...
Corporate Crime
FLOWCHARTS
Lifecycle of Health and Safety Cases in Scotland: Investigation, Prosecution, Trial, Sentencing and Fatal Accident Inquiries (Flowchart)
This Flowchart
shows the route health and safety cases take in Scotland, moving from investigation, through trial, and onwards to Fatal Accident Inquiries (FAIs). It ought to be considered alongside the following Practice Notes:
Fatal Accident Inquiries (FAIs) in Scotland
Health and safety investigations in Scotland
Prosecution process for health and safety cases in Scotland
Sentencing health and safety cases in Scotland
...
Corporate Crime
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