The development of sentencing frameworks has become an important and evolving area of judicial innovation in Singapore. Over the past decade, more than 50 sentencing guideline judgments have been delivered by the Singapore Court of Appeal and High Court, introducing various frameworks. Many of the concepts used in these frameworks such as offence-specific and offender-specific sentencing factors, key factual elements, multiple starting-point approaches, sentencing matrices, and sentencing bands are unique and have not been widely explored in other jurisdictions.
Sentencing Frameworks is the first book to examine the extensive body of Singapore case law on this subject. It provides the author’s views on the considerations involved in designing sentencing frameworks and addresses key questions, including the different types of frameworks used in Singapore, when they are appropriate, how to identify offence-specific factors and principal factual elements, when a sentencing bands framework may be suitable, and how starting-point sentences can be determined.
The book is intended for criminal law practitioners and anyone interested in understanding how sentencing frameworks are developed and how sentences are calculated.
From the Foreword:
The book offers a timely contribution to this rapidly evolving area of law, providing valuable insights into both the application of existing sentencing frameworks and the thoughtful development of new ones.
Table of Contents of Sentencing Frameworks in Singapore: Quick Reference Guide and Roadmap (Main Chapter and Annex Headings)
Chapter 1 – Is there a Precedent?
Chapter 2 – From Benchmarks to Bands
Chapter 3 – A Case for Self-formulated Sentencing Frameworks
Chapter 4 – The Art of Developing Sentencing Frameworks
Annexes
Annex A: Quick reference guide to guideline judgments issued by Singapore courts
Annex B: Sentencing frameworks issued by the Singapore Court of Appeal and High Court
Annex C: Reported cases where the Singapore State Courts have issued or endorsed sentencing frameworks
Annex D: Reported cases where the Singapore State Courts have declined to issue or endorse sentencing frameworks
Annex E: Formulating sentencing frameworks (Flowchart)
Annex F: Common offence-specific sentencing factors
Annex G: Types of harm
Annex H: Common offender-specific sentencing factors
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