- Key People:
- Susan Atkins
- Related Topics:
- crime
- délit grave
- délit
- contravention
Crime, délit, and contraventiondélit, and contravention
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What is a crime in civil law?
In civil law systems, crimes are classified into three categories: crime, délit, and contravention. Crimes are the most serious offenses, punishable by death or prolonged imprisonment. A délit is an offense warranting a short prison sentence, typically one to five years, or a fine. Contraventions are minor offenses.
Many countries have adopted a two-category system by reclassifying délits under the broader category of crimes and defining contraventions as acts committed without criminal intent but forbidden by law.
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What does the term 'délit' mean in civil law?
In civil law, délit refers to a wrong that has civil aspects and corresponds to a tort in Anglo-American law. It represents an obligation to pay a penalty because a wrong has been committed.
In countries with Roman-law traditions, a délit is an offense usually punishable by a short prison sentence, typically from one to five years, or a fine. It is considered less serious than a crime but more serious than a contravention. Some legal scholars have recommended reducing the categories of crime to two instead of three, defining délit as an infraction inspired by criminal intent and infringing directly on the rights of individuals and groups.
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What is a contravention in civil law?
In civil law systems, crime, délit, and contravention are classifications of criminal offenses. Contraventions are considered minor offenses. More broadly, a contravention is a failure to uphold the requirements of law, duty, or obligation.
In the 19th century, some countries reduced the categories of crime to two instead of three. Délit was generally defined as an infraction inspired by criminal intent that infringes directly on the rights of individuals and groups. Contravention came to mean any act committed without criminal intent but forbidden by law.
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How are crimes, délits, and contraventions different from each other?
In civil law systems, crimes, délits, and contraventions are three classifications of criminal offenses. Crimes are the most serious offenses, punishable by death or prolonged imprisonment. A délit is any offense punishable by a short prison sentence, usually from one to five years, or a fine. Contraventions are minor offenses.
Civil-law countries traditionally have used all three categories, corresponding to three types of tribunals: police courts (tribunaux de police), which determine guilt in cases of minor penalties; courts of correction (tribunaux correctionnels), requiring judges but no jury, which try all other cases not involving serious bodily harm; and full courts with a jury in other crimes.
These distinctions are not comparable to the Anglo-American distinctions between felony and misdemeanor.
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What kinds of punishments are given for crimes, délits, and contraventions?
In civil law systems, crimes, délits, and contraventions are three classifications of criminal offenses. Crimes are the most serious offenses, punishable by death or prolonged imprisonment. A délit is any offense punishable by a short prison sentence, usually from one to five years, or a fine. Contraventions are minor offenses.
If a defendant is found guilty, they are sentenced according to law and within limits predetermined by legislation. The objectives of most punishments are to rehabilitate the offender and deter others from similar acts. Common sentences include fines, short terms of imprisonment, and probation. In extremely serious cases, a long term of imprisonment or even capital punishment may be imposed.
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How does a court decide if an act is a crime, a délit, or a contravention in civil law systems?
In civil law systems, the classification of an act as a crime, délit, or contravention hinges on the severity of the offense and its corresponding punishment. Crimes are the most serious, punishable by death or long imprisonment. Délits are less severe, warranting short prison sentences or fines, while contraventions are minor offenses. The classification determines the type of court that will try the case, ranging from police courts for minor penalties to courts with a jury for serious crimes. Some countries have moved to a two-tiered system, but many retain the three-tiered structure, unofficially distinguishing between ordinary délits and more-serious délits involving significant bodily harm.
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Crime, délit, and contraventiondélit, and contravention, three classifications of criminal offense that are central to the administration of justice in many Roman- and civil-law countries (for distinctions in Anglo-American law covering analogous offenses, see felony and misdemeanour). Crimes in French law are the most serious offenses, punishable by death or prolonged imprisonment. A délit is any offense punishable by a short prison sentence, usually from one to five years, or a fine. Contraventions are minor offenses.
Civil-law countries traditionally have used all three categories, corresponding to three types of tribunals: police courts (tribunaux de police), which determine guilt in cases of minor penalties; courts of correction (tribunaux correctionnels), requiring judges but no jury, which try all other cases not involving serious bodily harm; and full courts with a jury in other crimes.
In the 19th century, legal scholars argued for the reduction of categories of crime to two instead of three. This recommendation was incorporated into many criminal codes, including those of Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy, Brazil, Norway, Venezuela, and Colombia. Délit was generally defined as an infraction inspired by a criminal intent and infringing directly on the rights of individuals and groups, thus including offenses that had previously been designated crimes. Contravention came to mean any act committed without criminal intent but forbidden by law.
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Most countries adopting the new definitions retained the three-tiered structure of the judiciary. In consequence, an informal yet important distinction was made between délits moins graves and délits graves—that is, between ordinary délits and crimes involving serious bodily harm that were reserved for trial by a full court with a jury. These procedural differences reduced the usefulness of the single term délit. Consequently, some countries, such as Hungary, Denmark, and Romania, continue to classify crimes in three rather than two categories. Only the Netherlands has pursued the logic of the dual categories of offenses by reducing the number of criminal tribunals from three to two. Most countries continue to try to reconcile a three-tiered court system with a modified form of the délit-contravention distinction. A person who commits a délit moins grave—e.g., larceny—is brought directly to trial before a judge sitting without a jury. The guilt or innocence of one who commits a contravention is determined summarily in a police or magistrate’s court.
These distinctions have led to important differences in the treatment of related offenses, such as attempts. Criminal attempts are routinely punished when the substantive offense would be a crime or a délit grave. An attempt of a less serious offense is usually ignored.
At one time, a hybrid category of self-regulatory crimes existed, délits-contraventions, which included such offenses as alcoholism, gambling, and breaches of health laws that carried penalties of more than one year’s imprisonment. Many systems have abolished this category by treating all offenses that impose such sentences as délits. This ensures that the same defenses available to a charge of robbery or assault are also available to one who commits other equally consequential crimes.
The distinctions between crime, délit, and contravention are not comparable to the Anglo-American distinctions between felony and misdemeanour. The latter belong to a fundamentally different evolution of criminal law.
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