The Health Impacts of Law for People Living with HIV: A Systematic Review of Literature
This review explores the complex relationship between law and health for people living with HIV, highlighting how legal frameworks impact access to care, prevention, and overall well-being. It examines key legal challenges—including criminalization, migration restrictions, privacy, and housing laws—demonstrating how these issues intersect and amplify health-related harms. By systematically analyzing global literature, the review uncovers how seemingly neutral laws disproportionately affect people with HIV, reinforcing stigma and barriers to care. The findings offer crucial insights for policymakers, legal professionals, and advocates working to address these systemic injustices.
Supreme Court of Finland R2012/1093 – KKO:2015:83
A, aware of his HIV infection, had several times unprotected anal sex with B without telling him about his illness. B had not been infected with HIV. The question of whether A had caused a serious danger to B's life or health.
This document has been translated from its original language using DeepL Pro (AI translation technology) in order to make more content available to HIV Justice Academy users. We acknowledge the limitations of machine translation and do not guarantee the accuracy of the translated version.
Original text is available at https://finlex.fi/fi/oikeus/kko/kko/2015/20150083
Vertical HIV transmission should be excluded from criminal prosecution (2009)
Joanne Csete and colleagues argue that criminal laws on HIV transmission and exposure should be reviewed and revised to ensure that vertical transmission is explicitly excluded as an object of criminal prosecution. Scaling up PMTCT services and ensuring that they are affordable, accessible, welcoming and of good quality is the most effective strategy for reducing vertical transmission of HIV and should be the primary strategy in all countries.
Supreme Court, Second Chamber, Criminal Division, Judgment 690/2019 of 11 Mar. 2020, Rec. 1807/2018
INJURY. Transmission of HIV in cases in which the infected person knew of his partner's disease. The complainant knew that her partner was a carrier of HIV, so having agreed to have sex with him, without any kind of prophylaxis, the transmission of the disease is not worthy of criminal reproach. External evidence of the disease that the complainant had to perceive, since she herself was diagnosed months later, and neither after this diagnosis, nor when she denounced an alleged aggression, did she make any allusion to the contagion of the disease. In dubio pro reo. Self endangerment of the complainant herself.
The SC dismissed the appeal filed against the sentence of the AP Madrid and confirmed the conviction for the crime of aggravated injury due to HIV infection.
This document has been translated from its original language using DeepL Pro (AI translation technology) in order to make more content available to HIV Justice Academy users. We acknowledge the limitations of machine translation and do not guarantee the accuracy of the translated version.
Criminalisation of HIV Non-Disclosure, Exposure and Transmission: Background and Current Landscape
This paper was commissioned by the UNAIDS Secretariat to serve as a background paper for the Expert Meeting on Criminalisation of HIV Non-Disclosure, Exposure and Transmission, 31 August – 2 September 2011, Geneva, Switzerland.
Manuel de Formation: Le VIH/SIDA et les Droits de l’Homme en RDC
Divisé en deux parties: La premiere est conçue pour donner aux lecteurs des informations pratiques sur le VIH/sida et les Droits de l’Homme dans le monde, en Afrique et particulièrement en RDC. La Partie B est le Manuel de Formation contenant des exercices pratique. Le Module 2, Chapitre 4 examine la criminalisation de la transmission du VIH.
Police and Blood-Borne Viruses
Contains information about blood-borne viruses including how they are spread, how to protect against infection and what to do if there is a possible exposure. Written to provide information and guidance, it does not supersede policies and procedures of policing agencies.
HIV transmission risk through anal intercourse: systematic review, meta-analysis and implications for HIV preventions
Reports findings from systematic review and meta-analysis of the literature on HIV-1 infectiousness through anal intercourse.
Mpofu/Mlilo vs State, Constitutional Court of Zimbabwe
Challenges Section 79 of the Zimbabwe Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act 23 of 2004, with the court deciding the provision was overly broad and unconstitutionally vague.
Her Majesty the Queen v. Henry Gerald Cuerrier
Ruling that failure to disclose HIV status constitutes fraud. Consequently, a partner’s consent to unprotected sexual activity is not valid. This ruling allows people with HIV in Canada who do not disclose their HIV-status before sex to be prosecuted under sexual assault laws.
New Zealand Police v Justin William Dalley
Clarifies that use of a condom satisfies the requirement to take ‘reasonable care’ to prevent HIV transmission during vaginal sex, and that ‘failsafe’ precautions are not required by law. Also finds that oral sex without a condom (and without ejaculation) satisfies the standard of ‘reasonable care and precautions’. This ruling means that disclosure of HIV status before vaginal sex is not required as long as a condom is used. Disclosure before oral sex is not required.
Case Analysis: Section 24 of the HIV and AIDS Prevention and Control Act Kenya: Reviewing AIDS Law Project v Attorney General and Another (2015)
Overview of the Kenya High Court’s ground-breaking decision that some terms in the HIV and AIDS Prevention and Control Act were too broadly defined and that Act contravened Kenya’s constitution.
Observation générale no 22 (2016) sur le droit à la santé sexuelle et procréative (art. 12 du Pacte international relatif aux droits économiques, sociaux et culturels)
Comprend un commentaire (paragraphe 40) selon lequel les États doivent réformer les lois qui entravent l'exercice du droit à la santé sexuelle et reproductive. Les exemples incluent les lois criminalisant la non-divulgation du statut VIH, et l'exposition et la transmission du VIH.