Crime & Authority: State Actors’ Protection - A Study on the Correlation Between Functional Immunity and Rules on Obedience to Orders
(2023) JURM02 20231Department of Law
Faculty of Law
- Abstract
- Functional immunity shields individuals from criminal responsibility when they commit a criminal act in a foreign state, on behalf of their home state. However, a prevailing issue in this domain is the ambiguity surrounding the scope of individuals that are eligible for functional immunity.
This thesis examines the extent to which individuals can evade criminal responsibility for acts perpetrated on behalf of their home state in a foreign state. As acts committed for the home state typically stem from an order or instruction, it is pertinent to explore the correlation between function-al immunity and rules on exemption from criminal responsibility due to obedi-ence to orders.
It is acknowledged that functional immunity can be granted to... (More) - Functional immunity shields individuals from criminal responsibility when they commit a criminal act in a foreign state, on behalf of their home state. However, a prevailing issue in this domain is the ambiguity surrounding the scope of individuals that are eligible for functional immunity.
This thesis examines the extent to which individuals can evade criminal responsibility for acts perpetrated on behalf of their home state in a foreign state. As acts committed for the home state typically stem from an order or instruction, it is pertinent to explore the correlation between function-al immunity and rules on exemption from criminal responsibility due to obedi-ence to orders.
It is acknowledged that functional immunity can be granted to an individual who has acted in an ‘official capacity’, either due to his position or the nature of the committed act. A general principle of law on obedience to orders is then developed based on an analysis of Swedish, German, and American law. The general principle of law proposes that freedom from crim-inal responsibility can be claimed for minor crimes when the act was author-ised, and the action was necessary and proportionate.
This thesis posits that the general rule on duty of obedience could serve as a supplement when an individual fails to acquire functional immunity. However, the thesis also asserts that defining the range of individ-uals who can have functional immunity should not involve establishing a "lower limit" in the hierarchical structure. Future research should instead fo-cus on refining the definition of "official capacity" and discerning when an individual has acted within this capacity. (Less) - Abstract (Swedish)
- Funktionsimmunitet innebär att en person som begått en brottslig gärning i en annan stat, men på uppdrag av hemstaten, blir immun mot straffrättsligt an-svar. Ett kontemporärt problem på området är dock att kretsen individer som kan erhålla funktionsimmunitet är oklar.
I detta examensarbete studeras frågan i vilken utsträckning indi-vider kan undgå straffansvar för gärningar begångna å statens vägnar i en annan stat. När en individ begår en brottslig gärning å sin hemstats vägnar föreligger i regel en order eller instruktion till grund för agerandet, varför det blir av intresse att studera sambandet mellan funktionsimmunitet och regler om straffrihet på grund av lydnadsplikt.
Det konstateras att funktionsimmunitet kan erhållas en... (More) - Funktionsimmunitet innebär att en person som begått en brottslig gärning i en annan stat, men på uppdrag av hemstaten, blir immun mot straffrättsligt an-svar. Ett kontemporärt problem på området är dock att kretsen individer som kan erhålla funktionsimmunitet är oklar.
I detta examensarbete studeras frågan i vilken utsträckning indi-vider kan undgå straffansvar för gärningar begångna å statens vägnar i en annan stat. När en individ begår en brottslig gärning å sin hemstats vägnar föreligger i regel en order eller instruktion till grund för agerandet, varför det blir av intresse att studera sambandet mellan funktionsimmunitet och regler om straffrihet på grund av lydnadsplikt.
Det konstateras att funktionsimmunitet kan erhållas en person som agerat i en "officiell kapacitet", antingen med anledning av dennes posit-ion eller med hänsyn till den begångna gärningens natur. En generell regel om lydnadsplikt skapas sedan utifrån en studie av svensk, tysk och amerikansk rätt. Där konstateras det att straffrihet kan erhållas för mindre brottslighet då det funnits ett bemyndigande att begå gärningen samt att agerandet ska ha varit nödvändigt och proportionerligt.
Detta examensarbete konstaterar att denna generella regel om lydnadsplikt skulle kunna tillämpas som ett komplement då funktionsimmuni-tet inte erhålls individen i fråga.
Detta examensarbete konstaterar dock också att en avgränsning av kretsen personer som kan ha funktionsimmunitet inte bör kretsa kring att försöka dra en "undre gräns" i den hierarkiska strukturen. För vidare studier bör fokus i stället avsättas på att fortsättningsvis avgränsa och definiera be-greppet "officiell kapacitet" och när en individ har agerat i en sådan ställning. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9116606
- author
- Balcanovic, Stefan LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- JURM02 20231
- year
- 2023
- type
- H3 - Professional qualifications (4 Years - )
- subject
- keywords
- Functional immunity, International criminal law, Duty of obedience, Förmans order, State officials
- language
- English
- id
- 9116606
- date added to LUP
- 2023-06-12 11:46:57
- date last changed
- 2023-06-12 11:46:57
@misc{9116606,
abstract = {{Functional immunity shields individuals from criminal responsibility when they commit a criminal act in a foreign state, on behalf of their home state. However, a prevailing issue in this domain is the ambiguity surrounding the scope of individuals that are eligible for functional immunity.
This thesis examines the extent to which individuals can evade criminal responsibility for acts perpetrated on behalf of their home state in a foreign state. As acts committed for the home state typically stem from an order or instruction, it is pertinent to explore the correlation between function-al immunity and rules on exemption from criminal responsibility due to obedi-ence to orders.
It is acknowledged that functional immunity can be granted to an individual who has acted in an ‘official capacity’, either due to his position or the nature of the committed act. A general principle of law on obedience to orders is then developed based on an analysis of Swedish, German, and American law. The general principle of law proposes that freedom from crim-inal responsibility can be claimed for minor crimes when the act was author-ised, and the action was necessary and proportionate.
This thesis posits that the general rule on duty of obedience could serve as a supplement when an individual fails to acquire functional immunity. However, the thesis also asserts that defining the range of individ-uals who can have functional immunity should not involve establishing a "lower limit" in the hierarchical structure. Future research should instead fo-cus on refining the definition of "official capacity" and discerning when an individual has acted within this capacity.}},
author = {{Balcanovic, Stefan}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Crime & Authority: State Actors’ Protection - A Study on the Correlation Between Functional Immunity and Rules on Obedience to Orders}},
year = {{2023}},
}