C/L/63. Criminal Law Essay

This work is split into two different parts. The first part deals with a problem question which requires one to consider offences of section 47 and section 20 of the Offences Against the Persons Act 1861. In particular, it also requires one to consider the defences that are open to those charged with these types of offences. In this particular scenario, I have considered consent as a defence. I have looked at consent in the context of sado-masochistic activities that have resulted in harm caused to one or more of the parties involved, and also the courts approach to these types of offences. In the second part of this essay, I have looked at intoxication as a defence. I have explained the nature of intoxication, the different kinds of intoxication, and the circumstances in which intoxication, as a defence, can be employed by the defendant, to negate liability for an offence with which he has been charged.