Coroners and Justice Act 2009

30 Duty to notify Coroner for Treasure etc of acquisition of certain objects

(1) After section 8 of the Treasure Act 1996 (c. 24) there is inserted—

“8A Duty to notify coroner of acquisition of certain objects

(1) A person who—

(a) acquires property in an object, and

(b) believes or has reasonable grounds for believing—

(i) that the object is treasure, and

(ii) that notification in respect of the object has not been given under section 8(1) or this subsection,

must notify the Coroner for Treasure before the end of the notice period.

(2) The notice period is fourteen days beginning with—

(a) the day after the person acquires property in the object; or

(b) if later, the day on which the person first believes or has reason to believe—

(i) that the object is treasure; and

(ii) that notification in respect of the object has not been given under section 8(1) or subsection (1) of this section.

(3) Any person who fails to comply with subsection (1) is guilty of an offence if—

(a) notification in respect of the object has not been given under section 8(1) or subsection (1) of this section; and

(b) there has been no investigation in relation to the object.

(4) Any person guilty of an offence under this section is liable on summary conviction to—

(a) imprisonment for a term not exceeding 51 weeks;

(b) a fine of an amount not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale; or

(c) both.

(5) In proceedings for an offence under this section, it is a defence for the defendant to show that he had, and has continued to have, a reasonable excuse for failing to notify the Coroner for Treasure.

(6) If the office of Coroner for Treasure is vacant, notification under subsection (1) must be given to an Assistant Coroner for Treasure.

(7) In determining for the purposes of this section whether a person has acquired property in an object, section 4 is to be disregarded.

(8) For the purposes of an investigation in relation to an object in respect of which notification has been given under subsection (1), the object is to be presumed, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, to have been found in England and Wales after the commencement of section 4.

(9) This section has effect subject to section 8B.

(10) In this section “investigation” means an investigation under section 26 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009.

(11) In its application to Northern Ireland this section has effect as if—

(a) in subsection (1), for “Coroner for Treasure” there were substituted “coroner for the district in which the object is located”;

(b) in subsection (3)(b), for “investigation” there were substituted “inquest”;

(c) in subsection (4)(a), for “51 weeks” there were substituted “three months”;

(d) in subsection (5), for “Coroner for Treasure” there were substituted “coroner”;

(e) in subsection (6), for the words from “Coroner for Treasure” to “Assistant Coroner for Treasure” there were substituted “coroner for a district is vacant, the person acting as coroner for that district is the coroner for the purposes of subsection (1)”;

(f) in subsection (8), for “investigation” there were substituted “inquest” and for “England and Wales” there were substituted “Northern Ireland”;

(g) in subsection (10), for ““investigation” means an investigation under section 26 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009” there were substituted ““inquest” means an inquest held under section 7”.”

(2) In section 10 of that Act (rewards), in subsection (5) (persons to whom reward may be paid), at the end insert—

“(d) any person who gave notice under section 8A in respect of the treasure.”

(3) In relation to an offence under section 8A of that Act (inserted by subsection (1) above) committed before the commencement of section 280(2) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (c. 44), a reference in the inserted section to 51 weeks is to be read as a reference to three months.