Criminal Code Act 1899

On the trial of a person charged with stealing, while employed in the public service, money which was the property of the Sovereign, or which came into the person’s possession by virtue of the person’s employment, or charged with stealing, while a clerk or servant, money which was the property of the person’s employer or which came into the person’s possession on account of the person’s employer or being a trustee within the meaning of the Trust Accounts Act 1973 charged with stealing money of which the person is a trustee on behalf of any other person, an entry in any book of account kept by the accused person, or kept in, under, or subject to, the person’s charge or supervision, purporting to be an entry of the receipt of any money, is evidence that the money so purporting to have been received was so received by the person.

On the trial of a person charged with any such offence, it is not necessary to prove the stealing by the accused person of any specific sum of money, if, on examination of the books of account or entries kept or made by the person, or kept or made in, under, or subject to, the person’s charge or supervision, or by any other evidence, there is proof of a general deficiency, and if the jury are satisfied that the accused person stole the deficient money or any part of it.

And on the trial of a person charged with any offence as a trustee referred to in subsection (1), the ownership of or the right, title, use or benefit in, to or of the money the subject matter of the charge may be laid in the indictment in the name of any one or other of the persons (the beneficiaries) of whose money the person charged is the trustee as aforesaid specifying any one of the beneficiaries by name with the addition of the words ‘and others’, and it is immaterial whether or not the evidence establishes that the said money was the property of any specific one of the beneficiaries, or that the right, title, use or benefit in, to or of the said money was in any specific one of the beneficiaries and the indictment will be sustained so far as regards that allegation upon proof that the property in, or the right, title, use or benefit in, to or of the money was in one or other of the beneficiaries without ascertaining which of them.

For subsection (1) or (3), the reference to a trustee within the meaning of the Trust Accounts Act 1973 includes a legal practitioner associate of a law practice, within the meaning of the Legal Profession Act 2007, if part 3.3 of the Legal Profession Act 2007 applies to the law practice. sch 1 pt 8 ch 63 s 641 amd 1945 9 Geo 6 No. 11 s 12; 2007 No. 24 s 770 sch 1; 2008 No. 55 s 118; 2024 No. 6 s 36 sch 1