Teoria Do Erro Direito Penal (2025)

Subject: Criminal Law (General Part) Focus: Legal treatment of factual and legal errors (Art. 20 & 21 of the Brazilian Penal Code – reference model for Civil Law systems). 1. Introduction The Theory of Mistake is a cornerstone of the General Theory of Crime. It addresses situations where the agent’s mental conception of reality diverges from actual reality at the moment of the act. Since criminal liability requires dolus (intent) or culpa (negligence), a mistake can exclude or reduce culpability. This report analyzes the distinction between essential mistake (factual error) and prohibited conduct error (legal error) , their consequences, and borderline cases. 2. Fundamental Distinction: Mistake of Fact vs. Mistake of Law Inspired by the distinction between error facti and error juris , criminal law treats them differently.