NEWS

The legitimacy of criminal law and the performance crises of penality

May 26th, 2025



The English-language article “The Legitimacy of Criminal Law and the Performance Crises of Penality” by Alessandro Corda, published in Criminal Law Forum. An International Journal on April 25, 2025, is here reported. 

The article contributes to the discussion on the legitimacy of state punishment and criminal law. Aiming to fill a gap in the theoretical literature on the subject, it addresses this issue through the analysis of three specific “performance crises” of penality, which may undermine the legitimacy of criminal law. The author focuses on the concept of “penal adequacy,” which should underpin punitive legitimacy, thus emphasizing the importance of a balanced and fair exercise of the state’s penal power. 

The full article is available at the following link