In criminal law, the verb procure means to bring about or produce an unlawful act through one’s actions or influence. Procurement is recognized as one form of accessory liability, alongside aiding, abetting, and counselling the commission of offences. A person who procures an offence may be held criminally liable even though they did not personally commit the principal offence. To establish liability, it must generally be shown that the accessory’s conduct had a causal connection with the commission of the crime by the principal offender. For example, encouraging or arranging circumstances that directly lead to the offence may amount to procurement. The law therefore extends criminal responsibility beyond the immediate perpetrator to those whose actions intentionally contribute to criminal conduct. Historically, the term “procure” was also used in offences relating to prostitution and prohibited sexual activity. Under older criminal legislation, procuring involved inducing or persuading individuals to become prostitutes or engage in unlawful sexual conduct. However, many of these former procurement offences were replaced by new offences under the Sexual Offences Act 2003. The concept of procurement nevertheless remains important within the broader doctrine of secondary participation in criminal law. It demonstrates that criminal liability may arise not only from direct action but also from intentionally causing or facilitating the unlawful acts of others.
