Voluntary Action in Law

Essay # 65697

Law > Criminal

A discussion on whether one can be culpable without intentionally performing an act.

1,539 words () | 5 sources | APA | 2005 United Kingdom

Paper Summary:

This is a criminal law theory paper which talks about the need for a voluntary act to have taken place before culpability can be ascertained. The question at hand is whether or not it is necessary for the voluntary act requirement to be present within the criminal law. It addresses what the voluntary act requirement is, whether there any other aspects of law that must be considered and what effect the voluntary act requirement has on criminal liability.

From the Paper:

"An actor can not be held responsible for the occurrence of an act that they are not responsible for or were completely unable to prevent. The prior example shows for the need to look the voluntary act requirement in conjunction with that of culpability and intention. At is most basic level A's actions can be considered as voluntary and the outcome can be attributed prima facia to A. However, this is ignoring a very important aspect, that of intention. It could be argued here using Glanville Williams point that if '[the] person in question could have refrained from [the act] if he so willed' then this act could be considered as involuntary. This is backed up by Harris who posits that an act needs to be a deliberate exercise of will."