Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Common law definition

What does Common law mean? In practice, common law means judge‑made rules developed through case law and applied by courts when resolving disputes, filling gaps where no statute applies, and guiding statutory interpretation. It is not defined by legislation; it is a descriptive label for principles articulated in judicial decisions and followed under the doctrine of precedent (stare decisis). Key features include incremental development, binding effect according to the court hierarchy, and availability of judge‑made remedies. It encompasses both common law and (in England & Wales, Northern Ireland and Ireland) equitable doctrines, such as fiduciary duties, trusts and injunctions. In Scotland, the mixed system uses...

Kidnapping at common law: elements, mens rea, consent, force or fraud, lawful excuse, continuing offence and sentencing (England and Wales)

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Practice notes

The offence of kidnapping

Kidnapping is a Common law offence, triable exclusively on Indictment. It is closely aligned with the offences of false imprisonment and child abduction. For further guidance, see Practice Notes: Common law offence of false imprisonment and Child abduction offences. Owing to its seriousness, kidnapping is heard only on indictment in the Crown Court, and when it occurs alongside other offences, it will be pleaded as a separate count on the indictment. Despite the recognised overlap between kidnapping and statutory abduction, an indictment should not include counts for both offences (C (1990) The Times, 9 November 1990 (not reported by LexisNexis®)). Section 5 of the Child Abduction Act 1984 (CAA 1984) states that, save with the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions, no prosecution shall be brought for kidnapping where the victim is under 16 and the alleged offender is ‘connected with’ the child within the meaning of CAA 1984, s 1.

Elements of the offence

In R v D, the Court of Appeal held that, on a charge of kidnapping, the prosecution must prove:

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