Consent (criminal)
Criminal defenses
Part of the common law series
Insanity · Immunity · Mental disorder
Diminished responsibility
Intoxication · Infancy
Automatism
Consent · Mistake
Duress · Necessity
Provocation · Self defense
False confession · Entrapment
See also
Criminal law and procedure
Other common law areas
Criminal · Contract · Tort ·
Property Wills
trusts and estates Evidence
Portals
Law · Criminal justice
In the criminal law, consent may be an ex-
cuse and prevent the defendant from incur-
ring liability for what was done. For a more
general discussion, see Dennis J. Baker, "The
Moral Limits of Consent as a Defense in the
Criminal Law," 12(2) New Criminal Law
Review (2009), see also consensual crime.
Generally
A defence against criminal liability may arise
when a defendant can argue that, because of
consent, there was no crime (e.g., arguing
that permission was given to use an auto-
mobile, so it was not theft or TWOC). But
public policy requires courts to lay down lim-
its on the extent to which citizens are al-
lowed to consent or are to be bound by ap-
parent consent given.
• As an application of parens patriae, for
example, minors cannot consent to having
sexual intercourse under a specified age
even though the particular instance of
statutory rape might be a "victimless"
offense. In the case of adults, there are
similar limits imposed on their capacity
where the state deems the issue to be of
sufficient significance. Thus, for example,
an individual domiciled in a common law
state cannot give consent and create a
valid second marriage. The second
ceremony will do no more than expose the
prospective spouse to a charge of bigamy.
Similarly, no consent can be given for an
incestuous relationship nor for
relationships that expose one of the
parties to excessive violence (e.g. most
states have a rule that an abusive husband
can be prosecuted even if the wife does
not co-operate and give evidence to rebut
the husband’s defense that the wife
consented). In English law, the Sexual
Offences Act 2003 remov