Introduction to Criminal Law Concepts

Criminal Code

• A list of federal laws that define criminal offenses.

Jurisprudence

• The philosophy and science of law.
• Foundational legal concepts and theories.

Private Law

• Cases involving disputes between private individuals or parties.

Public Law

• Cases involving the government and a private party.
• Government actions against individuals.

Common Law

• Legal precedents established from previous court decisions.
• Used to make decisions in current cases.

Statute Law

• Laws passed by the federal or provincial government.
• Written laws.

Rule of Law

• Citizens are subject to and equal under the law.
• No one is above the law.

Culpability

• Legally responsible for a criminal act.
• Liable for the act, and guilty.

Parliamentary Supremacy

• Parliament holds the supreme lawmaking power.
• Parliamentary laws are supreme to other laws.

Judicial Supremacy

• Judges are independent from the government.

Habeas Corpus

• A legal principle that requires a court to order the government to show cause for imprisoning someone.
• Ensuring due process and preventing wrongful imprisonment.

Reverse Onus

• The burden of proof shifts to the accused.
• Accused needs to convince the court of their release rather than detention.

Strict Liability

• Crimes where the crown does not need to prove intent.
• Proof of intent is not a requirement, only the act itself must be proved.

Notwithstanding Clause

• Allows parliament or legislature to override certain charter sections.
• A limited power enabling certain actions.

Section 33 of the Canadian Charter

• A legislative power to override certain charter sections.

Legal Positivism

• The idea that the existence and content of law depends on social facts and not on its merits.
• The existence of the law is dependent on its being socially created.

Legal Realism

• The study of law from a realistic perspective.
• Philosophy examining law in practice, not just theory.

Natural Law

• Human laws derived from unchanging natural principles.
• Human beings can discover and understand these principles with reason.

Positive Law

• Laws formulated by the state dictate how people must act.
• State-generated laws that are binding.

Spirit of the Law

• Judges consider context, circumstance, and justice to determine rulings.
• Considering the reasoning behind the law while applying it to a specific case.

Letter of the Law

• Judges adhere strictly to the literal wording of the law.
• Taking the law at its most literal meaning to determine a case.

Critical Morality

• Judges consider community standards related to morality when determining cases.

Popular Morality

• Moral values reflect the beliefs of the majority population.
• Judges may consider prevailing values in their decision-making.

Human Rights

• Fundamental rights protected in some countries.
• Rights belonging to individuals, born as citizens of a nation.

Domestic Law

• Laws that are specific to an individual country.

Absolute Liability

• Regulatory offences relating to practices where intent is irrelevant.
• Examples such as driving, pollution, or unfair trading.

Strict Liability

• The duty or obligation to know what one is doing.
• It is not necessary to prove awareness of wrongdoing when caught.

Veto Power

• The power to stop an action or decision.
• Usually a check or balance on power.

State Sovereignty

• A state's authority to control its territory and apply its laws.
• State's right to govern itself free from external intervention.

Diplomatic Immunity

• International law principle granting immunity to diplomats regarding their host country's laws.
• Foreign diplomats are immune from certain legal actions.

Precedent

• Legal decisions made in previous similar cases.
• Guidance for deciding future cases.

Recidivism

• Returning to criminal activity.
• Re-offending or committing crimes after previously doing so.

Political Asylum

• The right to seek refuge in another country from danger or persecution.
• The right to find safe shelter in another country.

Kyoto Protocol

• International accord addressing greenhouse gas emissions.
• An agreement to curb global warming.

Constitution

• Framework of a nation's government and legal system.
• Establishes the structure and powers of a government.

Utilitarianism

• The idea that the law should achieve the best results for people overall.
• The theory that actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness.

Section 11 of the Charter

• Specific rights protected in the charter .
• These freedoms of speech, etc, cannot be taken away.

Roman Law

• Early legal system that formed the basis of several legal systems.
• Established by Roman legal commissioners.

Magna Carta

• Historical document limiting the power of the king.
• Ideas of due process and limiting government power.

British Law

• Legal philosophy and precedent following the British Monarch.
• Influence of the British king such as Henry II on legal precedents.

Babylonian Law

• Earliest codified laws and the first time written laws were present.

1960 Canadian Bill of Rights

• A flawed Bill of Rights with concerns on its difficulty in changing the laws as compared to the charter.
• Flaw is mostly in how easily the Bill of Rights can be overturned.

R. v. Oakes

• This case discusses the limits on rights.
• Important in determining limits in rights for freedoms.

Self-Defense

• Legal defense used when facing harm.
• The use of force by one to protect themselves from another.

Intoxication

• Defense involving drug or alcohol consumption to change mental state.
• Legally being unconscious, unable to control actions, due to these substances.

Mental Disorder

• Defense if a person cannot understand the consequences of actions.

Automatism

• State of unconscious behavior.
• Unconscious behavior performed involuntarily.

Battered Woman's Syndrome

• Specific defense, related to domestic abuse.
• When a woman feels compelled to act in self-defense due to abuse.

Necessity

• Breaking the law when facing imminent danger.
• When breaking the law is crucial in avoiding harm to oneself or others.

Mistake of Fact

• Defense involving a misunderstanding of the facts.

Hobbes

• Philosopher who viewed the "State of Nature" as conflict-ridden.
• Proposed the idea of a social contract.

Socrates

• Philosopher who examined justice and law.
• Advocated for critical examination of laws and values.

Austin

• Legal philosopher who viewed law as based on sovereign power.
• Focused on the role of the government in law.

Bentham

• Developed utilitarianism, a philosophical theory related to legal decision-making.
• Focus was on achieving happiness for the greatest number of individuals, a positive outcome.

Plato

• Philosopher concerned with ideal forms and a perfect society.
• Looked at ideal ideas in the realm of justice and government.

Locke

• Philosopher who discussed natural rights.
• Argued that governments should protect these rights.

Aristotle

• Philosopher who defined humans as social and political animals.
• Focused on how humans act in an organized manner and society.

Police Search vs. School Official Search

Proportionality Test (Oakes Test)

• A test for determining if limits on rights are justifiable.

Keegstra and Zundel Cases

• Legal cases that examined limitations on free speech in Canada.

Polygraph Tests

• Tests used to detect deception, and unreliable.

Criminal Automatism

• Unconscious behaviors.
• Defense based on involuntary acts by the accused.

R. v. Park

• Canadian law case addressing involuntary acts.
• The case of a sleepwalking man committing a crime.

R. v. Stone

• Criminal case concerning automatism due to a lack of consciousness.

R. v. Abbey

• Criminal case related abuse and whether it qualifies as automatism.

Explore the fundamental concepts of criminal law, including definitions of criminal offenses, the distinction between public and private law, and essential legal principles like the rule of law and culpability. This quiz covers critical topics such as common law, statute law, and the supremacy of parliament. Test your knowledge of these foundational legal concepts.