360A   Indictment etc of corporations

(1)  Every provision of an Act relating to offences punishable upon indictment or upon summary conviction may, unless a contrary intention appears, be construed to apply to bodies corporate as well as to individuals.

(2)  Where a corporation whether alone or jointly with some other person is charged before justices with an indictable offence, the justices may, if they are of opinion that the evidence is sufficient to put the accused corporation upon trial, make an order authorising an indictment to be filed for the offence named in the order or for such other offence as the Attorney-General or any other person authorised by law to prosecute indictable offences shall deem proper, and such order shall be deemed to be a committal for trial:

Provided that:

(a)  where the offence is an offence which in the case of an adult may be dealt with summarily and the corporation does not appear by a representative or, if it does so appear, consents that the offence should be so dealt with, the offence may be dealt with summarily, and

(b)  if the corporation appears by a representative any answer to the question to be put under section 41 (4) of the Justices Act 1902 may be made on behalf of the corporation by that representative, but if the corporation does not so appear it shall not be necessary to put the question.

(3)  Where a bill is found against a corporation the corporation may on arraignment enter in writing by its representative a plea of guilty or not guilty. If no such plea is entered the court shall enter a plea of not guilty and the trial shall proceed as though the corporation had pleaded not guilty.

(4)  A representative need not be appointed under the seal of the corporation, and a written statement purporting to be signed by any person being one of the persons having the management of the affairs of the corporation to the effect that the person named has been appointed as the representative of the corporation shall be admissible as prima facie evidence that the person has been so appointed.

(5)  Any summons or other document may be served upon the corporation by leaving it at or sending it by post to the registered office of the corporation or to any place at which it trades or carries on business.

(6)  Where the penalty in respect of any offence is a term of imprisonment only, the court before which the offence is tried may, if it thinks fit, in the case of a body corporate, impose a pecuniary penalty not exceeding:

(a)  where the term of imprisonment does not exceed six months—two hundred dollars,

(b)  where the term of imprisonment exceeds six months but does not exceed one year—four hundred dollars,

(c)  where the term of imprisonment exceeds one year but does not exceed two years—one thousand dollars,

(d)  where the term of imprisonment exceeds two years—two thousand dollars.

In this subsection imprisonment includes penal servitude.

(7)  For the avoidance of doubt it is hereby declared that for the purposes of this section indictable offence means an offence punishable on indictment at common law or under any Act or Imperial Act.