The King v. Jacobs Group (Australia) Pty Ltd formerly known as Sinclair Knight Merz

Lower Court Judgment

11/07/2022 Supreme Court of New South Wales (Court of Criminal Appeal) (Bell CJ, Walton & Davies JJ)

[2022] NSWCCA 152

Catchwords

Criminal law – Sentencing – Penalty – Bribery of foreign official – Meaning of "benefit" – Where respondent pleaded guilty to offence of conspiring to cause offer of provision benefits to be made to other persons not legitimately due to those persons, with intention of influencing foreign public officials in order to obtain or retain business, contrary to ss 11.5 and 70.2 of Criminal Code – Where maximum penalty determined by s 70.2(5) and provides: offence punishable by fine not more than greatest of: (1) 100,000 penalty units; (2) where court can determine value of benefit body corporate obtained and that is reasonably attributable to conduct constituting offence—3 times value that benefit; and (3) where court cannot determine value of benefit—10% of annual turnover of body corporate – Where "benefit" obtained by respondent certain project contracts – Whether maximum penalty under second limb of s 70.2(5) calculated on basis that value of benefit of contract is: (1) contract price; or (2) contract price less (untainted) costs to offender of performing it.