Consent of the Victim in the Criminal Law of the States with Mixed and Religious-Type Legal Systems

Abstract

The article gives a comprehensive analysis of the consent of the person to cause harm to his own good guaranteed by the criminal law of the states with a mixed or religious-type legal systems. The author draws the conclusion about the inexpediency of using the term «consent of the victim» and justifies the priority of the concept of «consent of the person». The author suggests the prospects for further scientific research of the consent of the victim under the circumstances of the system, excluding criminality of the act. The author states that a valid harm caused with the consent of a person or at his/her request, can be interpreted as socially useful or socially valid (accepted) by its nature, therefore, such damage or harm is not recognized as a crime. The research reveals that in the criminal law of foreign countries the issue of a person’s consent for being done a harm regarding his legally protected good is solved in different ways. Consent (request) of a person is recognized as a constructive sign of the offense, a sign of a crime with mitigating circumstances or even as a circumstance excluding wrongfulness of the criminal act committed.