The Supreme Court has made a substantial change to the test for dishonesty in the criminal law. Since 1982 the two stage test setout in R v Ghosh [1982] QB 1053 by the Court of Appeal has been the approach taken by the courts. The Supreme Court in Ivey v Genting Casinos UK Ltd t/a Crockfords [2017] UKSC 67, has decided that the Ghosh test does not correctly represent the law and that directions based upon it should no longer be given.

This could have a significant impact on the defence of those charged with criminal offences where dishonesty is a key ingredient in the offence.