Companies Act 2014 section 882

Provision of information to juries

Section 882 deals with the types of documents and information that a trial judge may provide to a jury during a criminal trial for an offence under the Companies Act 2014, including the role an accountant may play in assisting the jury.

• In a criminal trial for a Companies Act offence, the judge may order that the jury receive copies of evidence, transcripts, visual aids, and other helpful documents in whatever format the judge considers appropriate.
• The judge may also provide the jury with an affidavit prepared by an accountant that summarises, in plain language, transactions by the accused or other persons relevant to the offence.
• If the prosecution wishes to have any such additional document given to the jury, it must first provide a copy to the accused before the trial, and the judge must consider any objections or representations the accused makes about it.
• Where an accountant's affidavit is given to the jury, the judge may require that accountant to appear and explain any relevant accounting procedures or principles to help the jury understand the material.