Duration of deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities: theory and practice problems

Abstract

Purpose. The objective of the study is to clarify the criminal law issues related to the determination of the terms of deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities as a special type of punishment. To achieve this objective, an appropriate methodology was applied, in particular, philosophical, general scientific and special scientific methods were used. For example, the dialectical method was used to identify the essential features of deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities; the historical and legal ones - when studying the problem of determining the optimal terms of deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities in the national criminal law doctrine; the comparative legal method - to clarify the specifics of the relationship between deprivation of a right and restriction of a right; typological one - to reveal the peculiarities of criminal law differentiation of terms of deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities; systemic and structural methods were used to study the deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities in the system of criminal punishment; formal and dogmatic ones - when analyzing the provisions of current criminal legislation of Ukraine establishing deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities as a type of punishment. Results. Establishing the periods of deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities in absolutely certain amounts contradicts the general principles of sentencing, eliminates the court's authority to impose an optimal punishment, and also negatively affects the mechanism of criminal law regulation. Scientific novelty. Deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities is an effective form of preventing and combating crime, as it provides for the harmonization of the relevant punitive properties with the personal characteristics of the perpetrator. Practical importance. In order to enhance the criminal legal impact of deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities, the duration should be set in relatively defined amounts with the mandatory definition of both the maximum and minimum limits.