Unlawful Act: The defendant must have committed an unlawful act.

• Examples include assault, battery, speeding, or robbery
• The act must be a criminal offense, not a civil wrong (R v Franklin)
• It must be an act, not an omission (R v Lowe)
• The act does not need to be aimed at the intended victim (R v Mitchell)
• The act can be aimed at property (R v Goodfellow)

Dangerous Act: The unlawful act must be considered dangerous.

• This is determined by an objective test (R v Church)
• A sober and reasonable person would recognize that some harm could result from the act

Causation of Death: The unlawful act must cause death.

• Factual causation: "But for" test (R v White)
• Legal causation: Significant contribution (R v Kimsey)
• Potential breaks in the chain of causation (R v Jordan / R v Kennedy)

Mens Rea: The mental element of the unlawful act must be established.

• The defendant only needs the mens rea (mental state) for the unlawful act they committed, not for causing death
• Example: R v Newbury and Jones (criminal damage)

Duty of Care: The defendant must have owed the victim a duty of care. This relationship can exist in various contexts:

• Doctor and patient (R v Adomako)
• Landlord and tenant (R v Singh)
• Employer and employee (R v Dean)

Breach of Duty: The defendant must have breached the duty of care through either an act or omission.

• Act: A conscious exercise of will
• Omission: Failing to act when owing a duty of care (as in R v Adomako)

Causation of Death: The breach must have caused the victim's death.

• The risk of death must be reasonably foreseeable (R v Rose)
• Factual causation: "But for" test (R v White)
• Legal causation: Significant contribution (R v Kimsey)

Gross Breach: The breach must be considered "gross" - so bad that it is deemed criminal (R v Bateman)