What does the AQA A-Level Law criminal law module cover?

Module 3.2 covers the rules and theory of criminal law, the general principles of liability (actus reus, mens rea, causation, omissions, transferred malice and coincidence), the non-fatal offences against the person (assault, battery, ABH, section 20 and section 18), the fatal offences (murder, voluntary manslaughter through loss of control and diminished responsibility, and involuntary manslaughter), the property offences of theft and robbery, and the general defences such as insanity, intoxication, self-defence and duress.

How is criminal law examined in AQA A-Level Law?

Criminal law is examined mainly through problem questions that give a scenario and ask you to advise on liability, working methodically through actus reus, mens rea, causation, the offence and any defences. There are also evaluation questions on areas such as the partial defences, the offences against the person, and the role of fault. Accurate citation of cases and statutes such as the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and the Theft Act 1968 is essential.

What is the difference between section 20 and section 18 of the OAPA 1861?

Both have the same actus reus: wounding or causing or inflicting grievous bodily harm. The difference is the mens rea. Section 20 requires intention or recklessness as to causing some harm (R v Mowatt) and carries a maximum of five years. Section 18 requires specific intent to cause grievous bodily harm (or intent to resist arrest) and is the most serious non-fatal offence, carrying a maximum of life imprisonment.

How should I revise AQA criminal law?

Learn the elements of each offence and defence as a checklist with one or two cases each, then practise applying them to problem scenarios in a structured way: identify the offence, prove actus reus and mens rea, deal with causation, then consider defences. Drill the order of analysis until it is automatic, and prepare evaluation points on fault, the partial defences and the offences against the person for the extended-answer questions.

EnglandLegal Studies

AQA A-Level Law 3.2 Criminal law: a complete overview of liability, offences and defences

Q: How do loss of control and diminished responsibility differ?

Both are partial defences under the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 that reduce murder to voluntary manslaughter. Loss of control (sections 54 to 55) needs a loss of self-control, a qualifying trigger of fear or anger, and that a normal person might have reacted similarly. Diminished responsibility (section 52) needs an abnormality of mental functioning from a recognised medical condition that substantially impaired the defendant and explains the killing.

A deep-dive AQA A-Level Law guide to module 3.2 Criminal law. Covers the rules and theory of criminal law, actus reus and mens rea, non-fatal offences, fatal offences (murder and manslaughter), property offences (theft and robbery) and the general defences, with the leading cases and exam patterns AQA repeats.

Generated by Claude Opus 4.820 min read3.2Updated 2026-06-02

Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed

Jump to a section

What this module actually demands
Theory and the principles of liability
The offences
The defences
How this module is examined
Check your knowledge

What this module actually demands

Criminal law is the engine of AQA A-Level Law problem questions. Module 3.2 runs from the underlying theory, through the general principles of liability, to the substantive offences and the general defences. The examiners test two linked skills: precise knowledge of the elements of each offence and defence, and the structured application of those elements to unfamiliar scenarios.

This guide walks through all six topics of the module, then sets out the exam patterns AQA repeats. Each topic has a matching dot-point page with practice questions; this overview ties them together.

Theory and the principles of liability

The module opens with the rules and theory of criminal law: the purposes of criminal law, the role of fault, the harm principle, and the relationship between criminal law, morality and justice. These synoptic themes should be applied to the substantive offences.

Actus reus and mens rea sets out the general principles of liability that run through every offence: conduct, consequence and circumstance crimes; liability for omissions where a duty exists; causation (factual "but for" and legal more-than-minimal cause, with intervening acts); intention (direct and oblique under R v Woollin) and recklessness (subjective, R v Cunningham, R v G); transferred malice; and the coincidence rule.

The offences

Non-fatal offences against the person form a ladder of seriousness: assault and battery, section 47 ABH, section 20 malicious wounding or inflicting GBH, and section 18 wounding with intent. The key skill is matching the facts to the right offence and stating the actus reus and mens rea of each.

Fatal offences covers murder (the unlawful killing with malice aforethought), the partial defences of loss of control and diminished responsibility that reduce murder to voluntary manslaughter, and the two forms of involuntary manslaughter: unlawful act (constructive) manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter (R v Adomako).

Property offences covers theft under the Theft Act 1968 (appropriation, property, belonging to another, dishonesty under Ivey v Genting Casinos, and intention permanently to deprive) and robbery (theft plus force).

The defences

The module closes with the general defences: insanity (the M'Naghten rules), automatism, intoxication (DPP v Majewski), self-defence and prevention of crime, consent (R v Brown), and duress by threats and circumstances (R v Howe, R v Hasan). You must know which defences are complete or partial and which offences each covers.

How this module is examined

A typical AQA profile for criminal law:

Problem questions. A scenario asking you to advise on liability, worked through actus reus, mens rea, causation, the offence and any defences.
Short-answer questions. Defining offences, stating mens rea, or naming the elements of a defence.
Evaluation and extended answers. Assessing the partial defences, the offences against the person, the law on intoxication, or the role of fault in criminal liability.

Check your knowledge

A mix of recall and application questions covering module 3.2. Attempt them under timed conditions, then check against the solutions.

State the test for factual causation and name a case illustrating it. (2 marks)
Explain the difference between direct and oblique intention. (3 marks)
Define a wound for the purposes of section 20 OAPA 1861. (2 marks)
Explain the key difference in mens rea between section 20 and section 18. (3 marks)
Define malice aforethought. (2 marks)
State the five elements of theft. (3 marks)
Explain the three elements of the M'Naghten rules. (3 marks)
Explain when intoxication can be a defence. (4 marks)

Solutions

Q1: The "but for" test: but for the defendant's act, would the result have occurred? Illustrated by R v White, where poison did not cause the victim's death.
Q2: Direct intention is where the consequence is the defendant's aim or purpose. Oblique intention is where the consequence was a virtual certainty and the defendant appreciated that it was (R v Woollin).
Q3: A wound is a break in the continuity of both layers of the skin (JCC v Eisenhower).
Q4: Section 20 requires intention or recklessness as to causing some harm (R v Mowatt); section 18 requires specific intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Q5: Malice aforethought is the intention to kill or to cause grievous bodily harm.
Q6: Appropriation, property, belonging to another, dishonesty, and the intention to permanently deprive.
Q7: A defect of reason, caused by a disease of the mind, so that the defendant did not know the nature and quality of the act or did not know it was wrong.
Q8: Intoxication is a defence only where it prevents the defendant forming the mens rea. For specific intent offences voluntary intoxication can negate intent; for basic intent offences it is no defence because getting intoxicated is itself reckless (DPP v Majewski).

Sources & how we know this

AQA A-level Law (7162) specification — AQA (2017)