Perjury

Perjury is a crime against the integrity of legal and official processes. It typically requires four elements: (1) a statement made under a lawfully administered oath or affirmation; (2) the statement is material to the matter at hand; (3) the speaker knows it is false; and (4) the statement is made willfully, not by mistake or faulty memory.

In the United States, federal perjury is codified at 18 U.S.C. § 1621 (general perjury) and § 1623 (false declarations before grand jury or court), both punishable by up to five years' imprisonment. A separate statute, 18 U.S.C. § 1001, covers false statements to federal officials even when not under oath. English law treats perjury under the Perjury Act 1911, while most civil-law jurisdictions criminalize faux témoignage or Meineid in their penal codes (e.g., German Strafgesetzbuch §§ 153–163).

A key doctrine is materiality: the false statement must be capable of influencing the proceeding's outcome. The U.S. Supreme Court in Bronston v. United States, 409 U.S. 352 (1973), held that literally true but misleading answers do not constitute perjury under § 1621 — the burden lies on the questioner to pin down the witness.

In international fora, perjury rules apply within tribunals such as the International Criminal Court (Rome Statute Article 70 criminalizes giving false testimony when under an obligation to tell the truth) and the ad hoc tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, which prosecuted false testimony under their respective Rules of Procedure and Evidence.

Perjury is distinct from:

• Contempt of court (defying judicial authority)
• Obstruction of justice (broader interference with proceedings)
• Subornation of perjury (inducing another to commit perjury)

Politically, perjury allegations have featured in high-profile cases including the 1998–99 impeachment of U.S. President Bill Clinton, where perjury before a federal grand jury was one of two articles adopted by the House.