Sexual Assault

Abstract

Abstract The book examines the most recent wave of reforms in substantive criminal law that changed the definitions of sexual assault and rape. Modern sexual assault laws no longer focus on offenders’ use of force or coercion but on the victims’ lack of consent as the hallmark of criminal wrong. It is, however, not evident what consent means or when one should presume lack of consent. The approach in the book is normative and comparative. It provides an overview of the discussions about the concept and diverse definitions of sexual consent, und it describes the background and content of law reform in six countries: Canada, England and Wales, Germany, Sweden, the United States (concentrating on the American Law Institute’s Model Penal Code), and Spain. The final part explores differences and similarities of these consent-based sexual assault laws, strengths and weaknesses of the reform processes, and it develops some advice for future law reform.