Corporate Liability for Corruption

The course presents the main models of corporate liability, the key elements of corruption offences, and possible sanctions. It discusses important elements of a legislative framework and provides practical examples from nearly 50 countries

• Measures of responsibility for corruption offences adopted by countries originally targeted natural persons. The fact that bribery and other most serious corruption offences are traditionally subject to criminal sanctions has contributed to the focus on individual liability.

• In many legal systems, one of the fundamental foundations of criminal law has been that for conviction a culpable mental attitude must be concurrent with the proscribed conduct and other material elements of an offenсe. At the same time, the ability of a legal entity to have any mental attitude still raises serious doubts among lawyers.

• Nevertheless, there are several significant arguments in favour of holding not only natural but also legal persons liable for corruption. Some of these arguments as well as the main models of corporate liability for corruption, the key elements of corruption offences, and the types of sanctions are discussed in this course.

• The course focuses on those elements of a legislative framework that require particular attention, identifies typical approaches and provides practical examples of their implementation, and discusses the advantages and disadvantages of alternative solutions. It will be especially useful for those responsible for developing anti-corruption legislation at the national level, as it will allow them to make informed decisions and not overlook important points.