Abstract
This article examines the question of criminal liability in terms of the theoretical distinction between justification and excuse. By contrast with German and other continental criminal law systems, the distinction has not played a significant part in the development of criminal law doctrine in common law jurisdictions. Over the past twenty years, however, there has been a growing interest in the benefits of this approach to conceptualising criminal liability, manifested by the considerable literature on justification and excuse and the frequent references to the distinction in judicial decisions and legislative enactments. Although the distinction has been given a great deal of attention in common law countries in recent years, attempts at a systematic classification of criminal law defences on this basis run up against serious difficulties. These difficulties have much to do with the fact that elements of both justification and excuse often appear to overlap in the moral basis of a legal defence. It is ...
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.