quality:corruption, structural:scholar_edition
Effect on conviction rates

In June 2020, the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention (Bra) reported that the number of rape convictions had increased from 190 in 2017 to 333 in 2019, a rise of 75% after Sweden adopted a consent-based definition of rape in May 2018; reports of rape rose by 21% in the same period. Furthermore, the introduction of the new offence of 'negligent rape' – for cases where courts found consent had not been established, but that the perpetrator had not intended to commit rape – led to the conviction of 12 people. Bra was positively surprised by this greater-than-expected impact, saying "this has led to greater justice for victims of rape," and hoping it would improve social attitudes towards sex. Amnesty International regarded the results as evidence that other countries should also adopt consent-based legislation in order to protect (potential) victims of sexual violence better.