Definition of Theft and other legal matters

[Segilla]

In the 1960's for insurance exams I committed to memory the defintion:- A person steals who without the consent of the owner, takes and carries away anything capable of being stolen permanently to deprive the owner thereof. Is this still current? Does Rylands v Fletcher still assume great importance and how often is the doctrine of the proximate cause raised, (also etched in memory!)..

[mrs_overall]

The definition of theft under Section 1 of the Theft Act 1968 is:
A person is guilty of theft if he dishonestly appropriates property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it.
Rylands v Fletcher (1868) is still one of the most quoted cases on strict liability relating to land.
When I was studying law we had to break down the definition of theft word by word and define each word (i.e. dishonestly = with malice aforethought).
I couldn't tell you what I had for breakfast yesterday morning but I can remember all the definitions I had to learn years ago!

[Segilla]

Thank you very much. I studied for the ACII pre 1968, so my definition must be the one from the early 20C(?).

[mrs_overall]

As far as I'm aware the 1968 Theft Act (which is still valid today) replaced the old Larceny Act. Is this the one you remember?