Cje Karolina Kremens, LL.M., Ph.D. Wojciech Jasiński, Ph.D. Department of Criminal Procedure Faculty of Law, Administration and Economics University of Wrocław Class I and II SCOPE OF APPLICATION OF CRIMINAL LAW (Binding force of criminal law with regard to time and place. Universal jurisdiction principle) Criminal Law I

Class I and II SCOPE OF THE APPLICATION OF CRIMINAL LAW SCOPE 1.General issues – terminology, definitions 2.Applicability of criminal law with respect to time 3.Applicability of criminal law with respect to space universal jurisdiction 4.Applicability of criminal law with respect to persons

GENERAL ISSUES criminal law vs. civil law

GENERAL ISSUES „…the distinction between a crime and civil wrong cannot be stated as depending upon what is done, because what is done may be the same in each case. The true distinction resides therefore, not in the nature of the wrongful act but in the legal consequences that may follow i t”

GENERAL ISSUES different purpose of criminal law and civil law criminal law – system of the punishment of wrongdoers by the state (maintaining social order) civil law – system of compensation of losses; system of rights and remedies for regulating interaction between members of society

GENERAL ISSUES substantive criminal law vs. criminal procedure

GENERAL ISSUES DEFINITION OF SUBSTANTIVE CRIMINAL LAW set of provisions describing forms of conduct (crimes) that have an associated punishment (penalty) or security measure due to their socially intolerable character

GENERAL ISSUES DEFINITION OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE set of legally regulated actions undertaken with a view to detecting an offence and the offender (suspect, accused, perpetrator of a crime), putting the offender on trial, issuing a verdict regarding the offender’s criminal liability and, possibly, carrying out a sentence or other measures

GENERAL ISSUES EVIDENCE LAW CRIMINOLOGY, VICTIMOLOGY CRIMINALISTICS (forensic science) INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL LAW EUROPEAN CRIMINAL LAW

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO TIME APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO TIME o principle of non-retroactivity o retroactivity of the milder (more lenient) statute o time of commitment of a crime

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO TIME PRINCIPLE OF NON-RETROACTIVITY o lex retro non agit o only a person who commits an act punishable under the law in force at the time of commitment of the crime bears criminal liability

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO TIME PRINCIPLE OF NON-RETROACTIVITY - issues o date of publication of the law o date when the law comes into force o vacatio legis o derogation of the law o laws with specified binding time o non-retroactivity principle and international criminal law

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO TIME RETROACTIVITY OF THE MILDER STATUTE o if the law in force when sentencing is different to the law in force when the offence was committed, the new law will apply o the new law favourable to the defendant will have retroactive effect, even if it came into force after the offence has been committed o „former law”

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO TIME TIME OF COMMITMENT OF AN OFFENCE o allows to determine whether the committed act was prohibited by the law at the time of comitment o which statute must be used if the law has changed o age of the offender (minors) o mental capacity to commit a crime

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO TIME TIME OF COMMITMENT OF AN OFFENCE o the time of commitment of an offence has to be understood as an act or omission of an act and not the result (effect) of an act o material offences (‘offence with result’) - offences requiring particular result, e.g. damage of property o continuous offences – e.g. illegal possession of firearm

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO SPACE APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO SPACE o the territorial principle o extraterritorial criminal jurisdiction o universal jurisdiction

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO SPACE THE TERRITORIAL PRINCIPLE o typically national criminal law is applicable on the territory of a state, its vessels and aircrafts (regardless of the nationality of the offender) o notion of a territory of a state o territorial jurisdiction in the international criminal law

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO SPACE THE TERRITORIAL PRINCIPLE place where an offence was committed o where act or ommission of an act o where the result take place o where the result is intended to take a place o principle of ubiquity – a single act may be committed in different places at the same time

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO SPACE EXTRATERRITORIAL CRIMINAL JURISDICTION o principle of active personality (principle of citizenship) – applicability of national law to citizens committing crimes abroad; applicable only if in a state on whcih territory crime was committed the act (or ommission) is considered a crime as well o exception for state officials in some jurisdictions

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO SPACE EXTRATERRITORIAL CRIMINAL JURISDICTION o royal principle (principle of interests) – applicability of national law to foreigners who, regardless of provisions that are in force in the place where an offence is committed, commits a serious offence against interests of that state (security, economic interests etc.)

APPLICABILITY OF CRIMINAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO SPACE UNIVERSAL JURISDICTION in-class discussion definition conditional universal jurisdiction absolute universal jurisdiction objections to universal jurisdiction