Fraud
4. Theft
Authors: Staff Legal Eagle
Firm / Chambers:
Last updated: 24 Jul 2015
- The most basic form of fraud is theft.
- Theft is the dishonest appropriation (taking) of property belonging to another person with the intention of permanently depriving them of it.
- Some thefts would not be considered fraudulent. Examples of non-fraudulent thefts include:
- stealing a lady’s handbag while she isn’t looking;
- finding someone’s wallet in the street and keeping it; or
- shoplifting from a store while the attendant is not looking.
- Some types of theft do amount to fraudulent conduct. They include:
- cashing fraudulent cheques;
- using another person’s ATM card to withdraw money from their account without their consent; or
- shoplifting from a store and when challenged by the attendant telling them you purchased the stolen items elsewhere.
- In order to prove theft the prosecution must prove:
- that the accused person appropriated (took) property belonging to another person;
- that the accused person intended to permanently deprive the other of the property; and
- the accused appropriated (took) the property dishonestly.
- Property includes the following:
- money;
- real property such as real estate or land;
- personal property such as cars or jewellery; and
- things with no physical existence such as debts.
- An intention to permanently deprive means that the accused person intended that the owner would never get the property back. It is different to borrowing an item with the genuine intention of giving it back.
- Obtaining property dishonestly means that the accused person knew that they were not legally entitled to the property at the time they took it.
- Taking property will not be dishonest if the accused person believed that they had a legal right to the property. This is also known as a claim of legal right. A claim of moral right such as a belief that the property should be yours is not sufficient.
- Each state and territory and the Commonwealth have their own criminal laws which set out the elements of theft. Our free Find a Lawyer directory can help you contact a lawyer in your region to get specific advice about the laws that apply in your situation.
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