Corporate Criminal Liability: Are You Ready for the New Rules

The Crime and Policing Act 2026, which received Royal Assent in April, marks a major expansion of corporate criminal liability in the UK. By dramatically widening the circumstances in which companies can be prosecuted for offences committed by senior personnel, the Act exposes organisations to criminal risk across a far broader range of conduct than ever before.

Sidley hosted a roundtable discussion on how the new rules could affect investigations, enforcement strategy, internal reporting lines, governance frameworks, and crisis management — and why many organisations might need to rethink what “effective compliance” now looked like.