Features of Delimitation of Crimes Provided for in Articles 285 of the Criminal Code and 286 of the Criminal Code when they are Committed in the Public Procurement

Abstract

The specifics of the criminal law regulation of liability for abuse of official powers and their excess committed in the field of public procurement are determined by the specifics of the regulation of the activities of officials participating in this sphere within the framework of their “procurement” and related functions. The correct qualification of acts committed in the field of public procurement requires reference to numerous regulations of the legislation on the contract system and on the procurement of goods, works, services by certain types of legal entities. The need to refer to the legislation on the contract system and on the procurement of goods, works, services by certain types of legal entities in the qualification of abuse of official powers and their excess arises when determining the content of the signs of the subject and almost all the signs of the objective side of the deed. Industry legislation in the context under consideration is characterized by high dynamism, “layering”, a significant number of contradictions and shortcomings. These circumstances determine errors and lack of uniformity in judicial practice when distinguishing crimes provided for in Articles 285 of the Criminal Code and 286 of the Criminal Code when they are committed in the field of public procurement. Homogeneous, and in some cases identical criminal actions of customer officials – violations in the pricing of goods, works, services; actions restricting competition (inaction); violations of the established procedure for concluding (changing, terminating) state and municipal contracts; violations in the acceptance of delivered goods (work performed, services rendered), etc. – may receive different criminal legal assessment. The purpose of the article is to develop recommendations and criteria for distinguishing crimes provided for in Articles 285 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and 286 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, taking into account the peculiarities of criminal legal assessment when committing these acts in the field of public procurement. To achieve this goal, general scientific (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction) and private scientific (formal legal) methods of cognition were used. In the study, taking into account the recommendations of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, theoretical positions in the science of criminal law, the peculiarities of the legal regulation of public procurement, recommendations for distinguishing the crimes under consideration, taking into account the specifics of the situation of their commission, are formulated.