EN
Subject of this article is the legal research on actions of kidnapping or hostage- keeping for ransom, and in return release of the hostages. Likewise in polish criminal law and other penal law systems, also in catholic canon law this is a crime. The main point of the article is to illustrate the evolution of law regulations on these crimes, as well as dogmatic and legal analysis of can. 1370 and can. 1397 Code of Canon Law (CIC) from the year 1983, which are related to it. The article also relates to notification problem and expiration of prosecution.