The legal nature of the exceptio veritatis criminal libel

Authors

  • Carmen Armendáriz León , Universidad Pontificia Comillas Universidad Complutense de Madrid

Keywords:

Libel (calumny), exceptio veritatis (defence of justification, defence of truth), legal nature, element of a criminal offence

Abstract

While the exceptio veritatis (defence of the truth) clause enjoys a long tradition in Spanish Criminal Law as a defence against prosecution for criminal libel (calumny), there is an on going debate among the scholars over its legal nature. This paper studiesthe role of the exceptio veritatis clause: some general considerations are followed by a conceptual examination of the criminal offence of libel and a concise review of its inclusion in successive Spanish Criminal Codes enacted from 1822 on. Finally, the paper describes the main positions on the legal nature of this clause.

Author Biography

  • Carmen Armendáriz León, , Universidad Pontificia Comillas Universidad Complutense de Madrid

    Profesora Propia Adjunta de Derecho Penal

    Profesora Asociada de Derecho Penal

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Published

2013-01-09

Issue

No. 70 (2007): enero-abril

Section

Articles

License

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How to Cite

The legal nature of the exceptio veritatis criminal libel. (2013). Icade. Journal of the Faculty of Law at Universidad Pontificia Comillas, 70, 221-243. https://revistas.comillas.edu/revistaicade/article/view/645