nulla pœna sine lege

See also: nulla poena sine lege

English

WOTD – 24 April 2012

Alternative forms

• nulla poena sine lege

Etymology

From Latin: nūlla (feminine form of nūllus, “not any”) + poena (“penalty”, “punishment”) + sine (“without”) + lēge (ablative singular form of lēx, “a law”) = “no punishment without a law”.

Pronunciation

• (Anglicised) IPA^(key): /ˌnʌlə ˈpiːnə ˌsaɪni ˈliːdʒi/
• (Latinate) IPA^(key): /ˌnʊlə ˈpɔɪnə ˌsiːneɪ ˈleɪɡeɪ/

Phrase

nulla pœna sine lege

1. (law) The principle that a person shall receive no punishment unless he has committed an offence as explicitly defined in a law.
   • 1945, The Solicitors’ Journal, volume 89, page 262:

     This is a wide definition, and the courts, no doubt bearing in mind that a wide application might tend to defeat the maxim “nulla pœna sine lege” have been cautious in its application in practice.

   • 1992, European Journal of Sociology, volumes 33-34, Plon, page 196:

     […] -cutions on these and similar constructs, thereby overruling nulla pœna sine lege.

   • 2005, Jerome Hall, General Principles of Criminal Law, page 55:

     This is especially pertinent to nulla poena sine lege in its particular reference to punishment.

Translations

nulla poena sine lege

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 罪刑法定原則／罪刑法定原则, 罪刑法定主義／罪刑法定主义 (zuìxíngfǎdìngzhǔyì)

• Finnish: nulla poena sine lege -periaate, laillisuusperiaate (fi)
• German: nulla poena sine lege (de), keine Strafe ohne Gesetz
• Japanese: 罪刑法定主義 (ja) (zaikeihouteisyugi)
• Korean: 죄형법정주의 (joehyeongbeopjeongjuui)
• Russian: please add this translation if you can

Further reading

• nulla pœna sine lege on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

French

Etymology

From Latin; see the English section.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ny.la pe.na si.ne le.ʒe/

Phrase

nulla pœna sine lege

1. nulla pœna sine lege