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Which body of law uses the maxim ‘actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea’ to express the general…

The maxim expresses the common-law principle that criminal liability ordinarily requires the relevant guilty mind as well as the prohibited act. The precise mental element…

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Which body of law uses the maxim ‘actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea’ to express the general requirement of a guilty mind in criminal liability?

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Answer and explanation

Correct answer C

The maxim expresses the common-law principle that criminal liability ordinarily requires the relevant guilty mind as well as the prohibited act.

The precise mental element depends on the offence, and a statute can exclude it.

DPP v Majewski, [1976] UKHL 2.

Option feedback

Option A

The cited maxim expresses a common-law principle of criminal liability.

Option B

The Latin wording does not make this rule a doctrine of Roman private law.

Option C

The maxim expresses the ordinary common-law relationship between the criminal act and the mental element.

Option D

Canon law is not the body of law in which the cited court applies this criminal-law maxim.

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