Codifying Criminal Law: Do Modern Codes Have it Right?
Canterbury Law Review, Vol. 5, pp. 312-320, 1993
10 Pages Posted: 4 Feb 2005
Abstract
Many jurisdictions in this part of the world and elsewhere are contemplating or are in the midst of criminal code reform. I want to talk today about the most basic decisions that face those criminal code reformers: How should a criminal code be structured? Which liability rules should be codified? What kinds of information should be taken into account in formulating a code's provisions? What ought to be the primary purposes and drafting principles of a code?
My general plan has two parts: first, to look briefly at the trends in codification during the past thirty years and to draw from this some lessons on the most useful reform approaches; and, second, to suggest other kinds of reforms, and approaches to reform, that are not reflected in existing codes but ought to be.
Keywords: criminal, modern code, criminal code, codification, criminal reform
JEL Classification: K14
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation