Silence becomes fraud under section 3 of the Fraud Act 2006 when a legal duty to disclose meets dishonesty and an intent to gain or cause loss.
Of the three ways fraud can be committed under the 2006 Act, failing to disclose is the one that turns on what was never said. This chapter starts by placing section 3 within the single offence of fraud and establishing that it is a conduct offence requiring no actual deception or loss. It then works through the actus reus — the existence of a legal duty to disclose and the sources from which one can arise — before turning to the mens rea of dishonesty, with its two-stage test, and intent to make a gain or cause a loss. The statutory definitions of gain and loss are examined in turn, and the chapter closes with the moment the offence is complete and the maximum sentence on indictment.
