Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis, 1st ed. 2024
Comparative Perspectives
International Criminal Justice Series, Vol. 35

?This book provides a comparative perspective on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on different criminal law systems. To this end, the book brings together country reports from Brazil, Argentina, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Austria, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, France and Belgium.

All country reports address the same key issues in order to facilitate comparative conclusions. Those key issues re: criminal liability for spreading the coronavirus, criminal liability of medical staff in triage situations, criminal liability of political decision-makers, as well as further (country-specific) challenges in the context of the pandemic and criminal law. Furthermore, they explore domestic case-law and academic literature relevant in this context.

This book will be useful for criminal law scholars and practitioners as well as policymakers around the world. The comparative approach of the book will provide them with a more informed and objective perception of their national systems and their respective approaches to COVID-19 and criminal law. Another key objective of this volume in the ICJ Series is to foster dialogue and an exchange of ideas between stakeholders of different nations and ultimately to enable cross-semination between different criminal law systems.

Prof. Dr. Frank Zimmermann is Professor for Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure, European and International Criminal Law as well as Criminal Law and Digitalization at the Institute for Criminal Sciences, Dept. V, University of Münster in Münster, Germany.

Part I. Introduction and Methodology.- Chapter 1. Aims and Design of the Present Comparative Criminal Law Study.- Part II. Country Reports.- Chapter 2. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Argentina.- Chapter 3. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Austria.- Chapter 4. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Belgium.- Chapter 5. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Brazil.- Chapter 6. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in France.- Chapter 7. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Germany.- Chapter 8. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Italy.- Chapter 9. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in the Netherlands.- Chapter 10. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Poland.- Chapter 11. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Portugal.- Chapter 12. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Spain.- Chapter 13. Criminal Law and the COVID-19 Crisis in Sweden.- Part III. Comparative Perspectives.- Chapter 14. Comparative Conclusions on the Role of Criminal Law in the COVID-19 Crisis.

Analysis of COVID-19 from the perspective of comparative criminal law

Criminal law problems during the pandemic in twelve countries

Interrelations between criminal law, constitutional law and administrative law