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Ett frivilligt deltagande - Om våldtäktsbestämmelsens frivillighetsrekvisit och dess förenlighet med legalitetsprincipen

Elgh, Jasmine LU (2020) LAGF03 20202
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract (Swedish)
I denna uppsats utreds hur våldtäktsbestämmelsens rekvisit ”inte deltar frivilligt” konstruerats av lagstiftaren och sedan tillämpats av domstolarna. Vidare undersöks huruvida rekvisitet står i strid med legalitetsprincipen som syftar till att upprätthålla rättssäkerheten, samt om en annan utformning istället är önskvärd. Genom en rättsdogmatisk metod har lagstiftning, förarbeten, praxis och doktrin bearbetats för att fastställa gällande rätt och för att identifiera eventuella brister i denna.

När en ny lagstiftning införs går det av naturliga skäl inte att detaljreglera eftersom domstolarna måste kunna se till omständigheterna i det enskilda fallet. Av denna anledning gavs frivilligt deltagande inte någon legaldefinition, utan det... (More)
I denna uppsats utreds hur våldtäktsbestämmelsens rekvisit ”inte deltar frivilligt” konstruerats av lagstiftaren och sedan tillämpats av domstolarna. Vidare undersöks huruvida rekvisitet står i strid med legalitetsprincipen som syftar till att upprätthålla rättssäkerheten, samt om en annan utformning istället är önskvärd. Genom en rättsdogmatisk metod har lagstiftning, förarbeten, praxis och doktrin bearbetats för att fastställa gällande rätt och för att identifiera eventuella brister i denna.

När en ny lagstiftning införs går det av naturliga skäl inte att detaljreglera eftersom domstolarna måste kunna se till omständigheterna i det enskilda fallet. Av denna anledning gavs frivilligt deltagande inte någon legaldefinition, utan det lämnades till domstolarna att tydliggöra innebörden. En sammanställning av praxis visar att tillämpningen hittills fungerat bra och i enlighet med lagstiftarens syfte. Detta är inte synonymt med att rekvisitet är rättssäkert. Frivillighetsrekvisitets avsaknad av legaldefinition ställs på sin spets i fall av tysta samtycken och där målsäganden gett tvetydiga signaler. Att vara passiv kan med dagens lagstiftning innebära både ett ja och ett nej till sexuellt umgänge, vilket gör det svårt för den enskilde att veta vad som är straffbart och inte. I detta avseende kan frivillighetsrekvisitet inte anses vara förenlig med legalitetsprincipens syfte.

I praxis finns däremot en stark tendens till att se passivitet som icke- frivillighet, vilket tydliggjort frivillighetsrekvisitets tillämpning i situationer där ena parten varit passiv under en sexuell handling. Utvecklingen i praxis talar för ett lagfäst krav på att frivilligheten ska ha kommit till uttryck, såvida inte en helt annan utformning av våldtäktsbestämmelsen är mer lämplig sett ur ett rättssäkerhetsperspektiv. (Less)
Abstract
Rape is when a sexual act is committed against someone who does not voluntarily participate. This follows from the Swedish rape legislation that entered into force 2018. This paper investigates how the Swedish legislator has chosen to construct the prerequisite of voluntary participation, as well as its interpretation in the courts. Furthermore, this paper investigates if this prerequisite is in conflict with the principle of legality, and if so, another alternative to today’s rape legislation is eligible. By using a legal dogmatic methodology, the material used is largely consisting of legislative history, legal doctrine and case law with the intention to identify the established law and any shortcomings in it.

When a new law enters... (More)
Rape is when a sexual act is committed against someone who does not voluntarily participate. This follows from the Swedish rape legislation that entered into force 2018. This paper investigates how the Swedish legislator has chosen to construct the prerequisite of voluntary participation, as well as its interpretation in the courts. Furthermore, this paper investigates if this prerequisite is in conflict with the principle of legality, and if so, another alternative to today’s rape legislation is eligible. By using a legal dogmatic methodology, the material used is largely consisting of legislative history, legal doctrine and case law with the intention to identify the established law and any shortcomings in it.

When a new law enters into force it cannot regulate every possible circumstance in detail since the courts have to take the circumstances of the individual case into account. Therefore, the legislator did not give voluntary participation a definition and hence it became the courts’ duty to clarify its meaning. Case law shows that the application of the new law is uniform and in accordance with the legislator’s aim. However, this is not the same as it being in accordance with the principle of legality. The lack of definition of voluntary participation asserts itself in cases of unexpressed consent and when the victim has given ambiguous signals of whether he or she voluntary participates or not. Passivity as a reaction to a sexual act can imply both yes and no according to the law, making it difficult for citizens to determine what is illegal and not. In this respect, the new rape legislation cannot be considered compatible with the principle of legality.

The courts however do have a strong tendency to consider passivity as non- consent which have resulted in a clarification of what is meant by voluntary participation. This practice indicates that a requirement of expressed voluntary participation should be enacted, unless another wording of the law is more appropriate in consideration of the principle of legality. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Elgh, Jasmine LU
supervisor
organization
course
LAGF03 20202
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Straffrätt, legalitetsprincipen, våldtäkt, frivillighet
language
Swedish
id
9034268
date added to LUP
2021-02-09 11:51:18
date last changed
2021-02-09 11:51:18
@misc{9034268,
  abstract     = {{Rape is when a sexual act is committed against someone who does not voluntarily participate. This follows from the Swedish rape legislation that entered into force 2018. This paper investigates how the Swedish legislator has chosen to construct the prerequisite of voluntary participation, as well as its interpretation in the courts. Furthermore, this paper investigates if this prerequisite is in conflict with the principle of legality, and if so, another alternative to today’s rape legislation is eligible. By using a legal dogmatic methodology, the material used is largely consisting of legislative history, legal doctrine and case law with the intention to identify the established law and any shortcomings in it.

When a new law enters into force it cannot regulate every possible circumstance in detail since the courts have to take the circumstances of the individual case into account. Therefore, the legislator did not give voluntary participation a definition and hence it became the courts’ duty to clarify its meaning. Case law shows that the application of the new law is uniform and in accordance with the legislator’s aim. However, this is not the same as it being in accordance with the principle of legality. The lack of definition of voluntary participation asserts itself in cases of unexpressed consent and when the victim has given ambiguous signals of whether he or she voluntary participates or not. Passivity as a reaction to a sexual act can imply both yes and no according to the law, making it difficult for citizens to determine what is illegal and not. In this respect, the new rape legislation cannot be considered compatible with the principle of legality.

The courts however do have a strong tendency to consider passivity as non- consent which have resulted in a clarification of what is meant by voluntary participation. This practice indicates that a requirement of expressed voluntary participation should be enacted, unless another wording of the law is more appropriate in consideration of the principle of legality.}},
  author       = {{Elgh, Jasmine}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Ett frivilligt deltagande - Om våldtäktsbestämmelsens frivillighetsrekvisit och dess förenlighet med legalitetsprincipen}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}