Prof. Dr Thierry Godel
Thierry Godel has been a Professor of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure at the Faculty of Law of UniDistance Suisse since 2021, where he teaches general criminal law and criminal procedure.
He holds a Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS) in Criminal Judiciary (specialization in Criminal Procedure, 2009) from the École romande pour la magistrature pénale in Neuchâtel, and earned his PhD in Law from the University of Fribourg in 2018. He also lectures on general criminal law and criminal procedure at the École romande en administration judiciaire (since 2018) and within the Swiss Military Justice system (since 2011), as part of training programs for members of the judiciary. From 2010 to 2021, he served as lecturer at the Chair of Criminal Law and Criminology at the University of Fribourg.
His research focuses on the criminal law aspects of violence and extremism, and on the rights of victims of violence, particularly from a comparative perspective (between the Swiss and Spanish criminal justice systems), as well as on the criminal law of disinformation and on criminal law in armed conflicts.
Professor Godel is co-editor and head of the editorial board of the journal Droit pénal et Politique Criminelle (DPPC), and is the author of several reference works in the fields of general criminal law (with José Hurtado Pozo, Droit pénal général, 3rd/4th ed., 2019/2023) and military criminal law (Etude critique et approfondie de la Procédure pénale militaire, 2018 ; L’interdiction pour les Suisses de servir dans des forces armées étrangères, 2023).
Alongside his academic activities, he has held several positions within the Swiss Military Justice system, serving as Federal Examining Magistrate (2011–2015), Deputy Head of the Legal Service (2015–2018), and, since 2021, as a Military Prosecutor (militia).
News
The prohibition for Swiss nationals to serve in foreign armed forces: Professor Thierry Godel’s new book is published on Weblaw
Publications
Les publications les plus récentes sont :
Articles / Articúlos / Articles
- Godel Thierry, Chambordon Sophie (2025), La protection du consentement en matière sexuel et les enjeux autour du non-consentement implicite / La protección del consentimiento en materia sexual y las cuestiones en torno al no consentimiento implícito, in : www.dppc.online, avril/abril 2025.
- Godel Thierry, Délèze Morgane (2024), Petit commentaire de la révision du droit pénal sexuel en Suisse, entrée en vigueur le 1er juillet 2024 / Petit commentaire de la révision du droit pénal sexuel en Suisse, entrée en vigueur le 1er juillet 2024, in : www.dppc.online, septiembre/septembre 2024.
- Godel Thierry, Rodríguez Sánchez Alicia (2024), Petit commentaire du droit pénal sexuel en Espagne en 2022 et de ses ajustements en 2023 / Breve comentario sobre la revisión del derecho penal sexual en España en 2022 y sus ajustamientos en 2023, in: www.dppc.online, septiembre/septembre 2024.
Livres / Libros / Books
- Hurtado Pozo José, Godel Thierry (2023), Droit pénal général, 4 éd. complétée et mise à jour, Schulthess Editions romandes 2023 (831 pages).
- Godel Thierry (2023), L’interdiction pour les Suisses de servir dans des forces armées étrangères : Etude de la jurisprudence relative à l’article 94 du Code pénal militaire dans le contexte des guerres modernes et analyse critique des critères établis, Éditions Weblaw (Ebook, 156 pages)
Revue / Revista DPPC
- Hurtado Pozo, Godel (édit.), Les effets secondaires de la lutte contre le terrorisme / Los efectos secundarios de la lucha contra el terrorismo, Vol. 1 (2025)
- Godel, Editorial
Research focus
The research focuses on the criminal law aspects of violence and extremism, and on the rights of victims of violence, particularly from a comparative perspective (between the Swiss and Spanish criminal justice systems), as well as on the criminal law of disinformation and on criminal law in armed conflicts.
Research projects
Research groups
Criminal Law, Violences and Extremism
Faculty of Law
Teaching
Functions at UniDistance Suisse
Faculty of Law
- Assistant Professor
Criminal Law, Violences and Extremism
- Assistant Professor
Faculty Council of the Faculty of Law
- Assistant Professor
Academic Council
- Assistant Professor
- Professors' representative F