Short intervals of time as a condition of a continuous act

Abstract

The concept of a continuous act is regulated in Article 12 of the Act of 6 June 1997 – Penal Code. This provision indicates the conditions that must be met in order for a continuous act to occur. One of these conditions is short intervals of time. The Penal Code lacks a legal definition of this concept, which entails numerous disputes and controversies as to how it should be understood. Some of the doubts raised by the representatives of the doctrine are presented in this article. They concern, among other issues, whether short intervals of time should occur between the first and last acts of conduct constituting a continuous act, or between successive acts of conduct, and how long a period of time must be to be considered as a short interval of time. The author also presents her own position on the most important issues related to the discussed issues.