Criminal proceedings may be commenced and maintained against a person for conduct substantially the same as that which was the subject of prior civil penalty proceedings under the Corporations Act, provided the criminal offences are different in important respects from the civil causes of action and the criminal charges are not inconsistent with the outcome of the civil proceedings. The Pearce principle — that charging offences different in important respects is not an abuse of process — extends to successive proceedings, not merely multiple counts on a single indictment. Carroll v The Queen is confined to cases where subsequent proceedings are inconsistent with a prior criminal acquittal. The scope and constitutional validity of s 1317P of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) remains unresolved.
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