Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

This is a new section. It is proposed that, subject to a small number of exceptions, such as fraudulent trading and market abuse, the majority of offences under the Companies Acts should be classified according to a four-tier system. As I outlined earlier, category 4 offences will be prosecutable only on a summary basis and on conviction will give rise to no more than a class A fine, currently set at €6,394 by the Fines Act 2010, previously £5,000. That is an amount no greater than the District Court can impose for any other criminal offence. Category 3 offences will likewise be prosecutable only summarily but on conviction may give rise to a prison sentence of up to six months or a class A fine or both.

Both category 2 and category 1 offences attract the same consequences when prosecuted summarily, namely, a class A fine or imprisonment of up to 12 months or both. Both these categories may also be prosecuted on indictment. In such a case, a category 2 offence will attract a fine of not more than €50,000 or a prison term not exceeding five years or both. A category 1 offence will have a penalty of a fine of not more than €500,000 or up to ten years in prison or both.