Criminal Policies, Justice and Fundamental Rights
| Keywords |
| Classification |
Keyword |
| OFICIAL |
Criminology |
Instance: 2024/2025 - 2S (since 12-02-2024 to 23-05-2025) 
Cycles of Study/Courses
Teaching language
Suitable for English-speaking students
Objectives
- Provide students with the basic concepts and frameworks for proper comprehension of political relations between criminal justice and fundamental rights.
- It is intended that students acquire knowledge in the field of essential functions, including the theoretical and dogmatic as well as analysis of the system of fundamental rights in positive law and the Portuguese international system of human rights.
- Introduction to the concept of "fundamental rights" under the theory of the Constitution, which encompass an analysis of Portuguese constitutionalism.
- Understanding the specific dynamics and critical reflection on the major trends in relation to the criminal policies from the point of view of respect or disrespect for fundamental rights.
Learning outcomes and competences
- Knowing the importance and role of fundamental rights in the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic.
- Critically analyze the relations between criminal and political rights.
- Further analysis of that relationship between criminal policy and fundamental rights within specific criminal policies.
Working method
Presencial
Program
I. Fundamental rights. Brief note on their origin, meaning and foundation. Fundamental rights and human rights.
- Introduction to the concept of 'fundamental rights' within the Constitutional Theory.
- The fundamental rights regime in the Portuguese Constitution.
- Domestic and international protection.
- The sense of fundamental rights and the principle of human dignity: case studies and new challenges.
II. Crimigration: case study on criminal policies and human rights.
III. Justice as a philosophical, axiological, political and ethical-legal concept.
IV. Criminal Policies
-
Criminal policies and human rights: a strange relationship.
-
Security and rights: freedom vs. security.
-
The transformations in the penal subject.
-
The functions of the penalty and the protection of human rights.
-
The moralisation of criminal law and criminal policies against human rights.
-
The humanization of criminal policies and conflicts with fundamental rights (prevention, pardon, procedural justice).
-
The criminal policy of international treaties: crimes of international transcendence, crimes against humanity, terrorism and human rights.
Mandatory literature
Alexandrino , José Alberto de Melo;
Direitos fundamentais : introdução geral. ISBN: 978-972-8818-89-0
Queiroz Cristina 1957-;
Direitos fundamentais. ISBN: 978-972-32-1824-4
Neto Maria Luísa Alves da Silva 1971-;
Novos direitos ou novo[s] objecto[s] para o direito?. ISBN: 978-989-8265-28-9
José Carlos Vieira de Andrade;
Os^direitos fundamentais na Constituição Portuguesa de 1976. ISBN: 978-972-40-7922-6
Dias Jorge de Figueiredo 1937-;
Temas básicos da doutrina penal. ISBN: 972-32-1012-6
Complementary Bibliography
Agra Cândido da 300 1948-;
A^criminologia. ISBN: 978-989-8265-88-3
Delmas-Marty Mireille;
Les^grands systèmes de politique criminelle. ISBN: 2-13-044628-0
Brandariz García José Ángel;
Política criminal de la exclusión. ISBN: 978-84-9836-239-8
Ferrajoli Luigi 1940-;
Derecho y razón. ISBN: 978-84-9879-046-7
Zaffaroni Eugenio Raúl;
El^enemigo en el derecho penal. ISBN: 978-84-9772-973-4
Bobbio Norberto 1909-2004;
L.età dei diritti. ISBN: 88-06-14632-7
Teaching methods and learning activities
Theoretical and practical, combining the description of contents with exercises to apply knowledge transmitted. Emphasis will be, in the latter, work in small groups focusing on analyzing and discussing documents previously prepared by the students.
keywords
Social sciences > Criminology
Evaluation Type
Distributed evaluation with final exam
Assessment Components
| Designation |
Weight (%) |
| Exame |
75,00 |
| Trabalho escrito |
25,00 |
| Total: |
100,00 |
Amount of time allocated to each course unit
| Designation |
Time (hours) |
| Estudo autónomo |
26,00 |
| Frequência das aulas |
44,00 |
| Trabalho escrito |
30,00 |
| Total: |
100,00 |
Eligibility for exams
Type: Distributed Evaluation with final exam.
The DE is a written work consisting of a reading sheet made by small groups of students from a paper previously chosen among the ones available. The completion of the work is compulsory, being the classification obtained in this component considered in the calculation of the final classification in the normal and appeal examination periods. Approval in DE is necessary to be admitted to final exam.
It is permissible to use the mark obtained in the continuous assessment work performed in the two previous academic years. For this purpose, interested students must express their interest by sending an email to the teaching team by the last day of the academic term (May 23, 2025).
Evaluation formula: Rating distributed: work and presentation of readings 25 %, final exam: 75%.
Calculation formula of final grade
Distributed evaluation: reading sheet: 25%; final exam: 75%