The right to silence of corporations

The research topic of this doctoral thesis is the right to silence of corporations. The issue is highly relevant in view of the importance of corporations in society and the use of corporate criminal liability. The research and theory on the substantive criteria of the criminal responsibility of corporations is not paralleled by corresponding research into the fair trial rights of corporations as criminal defendants.

Therefore this doctoral thesis aims at providing a thorough analysis of the right to silence of corporations. The research is conducted along two lines: on the one hand, the thesis analyses the origin, nature, ratio and scope of the right to silence from a European perspective as well as from the perspective of three selected national systems. On the other hand, it encompasses both theoretical and practical considerations.

The central research question that is addressed throughout the research is: Does and should the right to silence apply to corporations, and if so, to what extent? The research should provide a tentative framework for the right to silence of corporations, and indicate whether and how it should apply to corporations. In doing so, the thesis wants to make a meaningful contribution to the more general debate on the entitlement of corporations to fair trial rights.