Substantive French Criminal Law

Sun, 05 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Sources and the Principle of Legality

French criminal law (droit pénal) is codified in the Code Pénal, enacted in its current form by the Law of 22 July 1992 and effective since 1 March 1994, replacing the Napoleonic Code Pénal of 1810. The principle of legality (principe de légalité criminelle), codified in Article 111-3 of the Code Pénal and derived from Article 8 of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen of 1789, provides that no one may be punished except by virtue of a law enacted prior to the offence and legally applicable. The hierarchy of criminal norms establishes that crimes and délits must be defined by statute (loi), while contraventions may be defined by regulation (règlement). The principle of strict construction (principe d’interprétation stricte de la loi pénale), codified in Article 111-4, requires that penal statutes be interpreted narrowly and prohibits the extension of criminal provisions by analogy.

Criminal Law on ExcellentWiki - Legal Encyclopedia

Substantive French Criminal Law

Sources and the Principle of Legality