This volume deals with the problem of paternalism within the criminal law discourse. Autonomy, free will, the well-being of the persons and the limits of penalization are the crucial issues.

In contradistinction to the moralizing and overprotecting stance of a maximal penal law in cases where paternalism is an issue, the proponents of autonomy and respect of free will vote for the total or almost total withdrawal of criminal law from this field.

The volume is divided in two parts. In the first part, paternalism is viewed as a general problem concerning wider contexts having to do with the criminal law discourse at a meta-theoretical level, as well as with certain problems of constitutionalism. The second part deals with specific criminal law issues.