Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014

128 Offences by societies to be also offences by officers etc

(1) Where a registered society commits an offence under this Act, the offence is treated as also having been committed by—

(a) every officer of the society who is bound by its rules to fulfil the duty of which the offence is a breach, or

(b) if there is no such officer, every member of its committee.

(2) In proceedings against a person alleged to have committed an offence under this Act by virtue of subsection (1)(b), it is a defence to prove—

(a) that the person was ignorant of the commission of the offence, or

(b) that the person attempted to prevent the commission of the offence.

(3) Subsection (1) does not apply to an offence under section 127 consisting of a failure to comply with section 12 or 50(2) or (3).

(4) For the purposes of this section as it applies in relation to a failure to comply with section 123(3)(a), a liquidator of a society is treated as an officer of it.