Acceso usuarios
Giovani Cocco
Some Cornerstones of the Liberal Interpretation. Lessons and Differences from the US Experience
This essay highlights the central role of the will of the legislature in the interpretation of criminal provisions, in addition to compliance with the literal meaning thereof. In particular, it explores the connection, in the US system, of the so-called rule of lenity with the common law and the compliance of the so-called liberal construction with the principles of the rule of law, where the former attributes a central role to the legislative purposes, while only a residual role can be attributed to the rule of lenity. In conclusion, the US path to overcoming the common law and to reaffirming the rule of law provides significant confirmations of the prohibition for the judge, who is constitutionally subject to the law, to render any creative interpretation.
