Strafvereitelung der Verfahrensbeteiligten

Regardless of their adherence to professional or socially permissible standards, defence counsel, prosecution and judge are constantly under the threat of facing charges for obstruction of justice when acting in favour of the accused. The dissertation provides a comprehensive analysis and reworking of the scholarly debate in this respect, suggesting that, in the end, all parties may be effectively assessed by a uniform criterion for liability. With due regard to both the statutorily protected interests and overarching national and international specifications, predominant consideration is thereby given to the function that the respective actor performs in the course of criminal proceedings. The model thus developed is shown to fit relevant past cases and possible future scenarios alike; it is proposed that §§ 258 and 258a StGB be amended accordingly. However, the relevant – and hitherto scarcely discussed – substantive and procedural questions touched on in the process go far beyond.