A GJ Advances article.

Abstract

This article studies the similarities and differences between criminal fraud, i.e. deception punishable under criminal law, in Germanic and Nordic legal systems. The authors compare how certain types of fraudulent behaviour are criminalised and, more profoundly, paradigmatically understood in the legal systems of Germany, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Also, to a lesser extent, the law of Switzerland and Austria is taken into account.

The first chapter is a concise introduction, followed by the main body of the work which presents the foundational background, ideas and the chosen approach. The next part offers a reconstruction of general legal landscapes in Germanic and Nordic law concentrating on the nature of judicial thinking and judicial mentality. Then criminal fraud is looked into through comparative matrix and specific attention is paid to the structure of law, the impression given by major textbooks, underlying theoretical conceptions concerning fraud, the significance of the mental state of the victim, and a tentative demonstration of the specific ways of thinking in each of the compared systems. The last part contains comparative discussion and a more general theoretical idea according to which detailed comparative study may reveal micro-level differences under the surface of commonalities.

Originally published in Global Jurist Advances.

Recommended Citation

Husa, Jaakko and Tapani, Jussi (2005) "Germanic and Nordic Fraud - A Comparative Look Under the Surface of Commonalities," Global Jurist Advances: Vol. 5 : Iss. 2, Article 2.
Available at: http://www.bepress.com/gj/advances/vol5/iss2/art2