Multi-Volume Series
In 2018, we started working on a multi-volume series on criminal law and criminal justice. Volumes I-III are published by Cambridge University Press. The first volume appeared in 2020, to be followed by Volume 2 in early 2022. The third volume will appear in mid-2024.Another multi-volume cycle of books has just been agreed with. The publisher will be Hart Publishing as an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing. The title will be "Fundamental Concepts in Criminal Law and Criminal Justice".
Rationale
The trans-jurisdictional discourse on criminal justice is often hampered by mutual misunderstandings. The translation of legal concepts from English into other languages and vice versa is subject to ambiguity and potential error: the same term may assume different meanings in different legal contexts. More importantly, legal systems may choose differing theoretical or policy approaches to resolving the same issues, which sometimes – but not always – lead to similar outcomes. In the volumes of this series, most chapters are written by eminent scholars from German-speaking and Anglo-American jurisdictions working together on comparative essays that explore foundational concepts of criminal law and procedure—a few chapters are written by a single author who is well versed in both legal systems involved. Each topic is illuminated from German and Anglo-American perspectives, and differences and similarities are analysed.Based on this and prior comparative projects, we have good reason to believe that there exists greater unity among diverse systems of criminal law and justice than is commonly realised. In order to uncover these similarities, we must take a step back from the details and the linguistic variations of the various criminal codes and statutes. The common concepts and ideas that may emerge cannot be found in statutory rules and case law but rather in the theoretical discourse that transcends legal cultures. The authors therefore explore the foundational principles and concepts that underpin the different legal systems.
Most book chapters have been and will continue to be co-authored in tandem, with one author from each legal tradition. Exceptionally, chapters are written by a single author who is well versed in both legal systems involved.
The volumes' contributing authors, all internationally recognized experts in their field, are carefully selected to reflect a diversity of backgrounds in legal theory and criminology. The international renown of the contributors guarantees that these volumes will appeal to readers well beyond the German-Anglo-American context, especially since many jurisdictions worldwide have emulated aspects of the German, English, or American systems of criminal law and procedure., We are therefore confident that the volumes will attract a world-wide readership.