Fundamental Concepts in Criminal Law and Criminal Justice

The first volume of a three volume series which presents a set of common foundational concepts in criminal law and criminal justice. Focusing on a comparison between Anglo-American and German concepts, doctrines, principles and structures, each chapter is includes factual scenarios which illustrate the concepts explained.

Criminal law and criminal justice are becoming increasingly globalised. There is a growing desire to develop common approaches to common problems and to learn from the diversity of current practice in different countries. This development has been reinforced by the internationalisation of criminal justice in international and mixed criminal tribunals. However, attempts at trans-jurisdictional discourse are often hampered by mutual misunderstandings. Professionals and academics engaged in comparative criminal law sometimes use the same terms with different meanings or different terms which mean the same thing.

If we are to overcome these obstacles, we need to engage in a multijurisdictional and comparative conceptual analysis of a kind not provided by previous comparative projects, which typically focus on specific topics or issues. This volume looks for a set of common foundational concepts that could provide the basis for productive trans-jurisdictional exchanges. It provides insight on key topics such as the offences against property, self defence, liability for attempts, cyber crime, the presumption of innocence, the role of victims, and wrongful convictions. It includes contributions from distinguished scholars with international reputations, from a diversity of backgrounds and including theoretical and normative as well as empirical focuses.