Sentence pronouncements: What judges say when sentencing

Abstract

Most studies about legal decision-making have been approached from a quantitative perspective and in the context of the Anglo-Saxon judicial tradition. Our study consists of a qualitative analysis of judges’ sentence pronouncements in Portuguese courts. Sentence pronouncements are the moment when the decision is made public and, therefore, judges have to select which elements must be highlighted to the defendant. This trial moment is not clearly defined by the law, which gives judges the opportunity to develop it as they consider appropriate. Our results show that judges mainly transmit legal explanations and judges’ viewpoints to offenders. The results also show that the structure and content of these oral presentations of sentencing show great variation among judges, panels of judges and situations.