Prospective Directions of Prosecutor’s Offi ce Activity in Enhancing the Institution of Independent Anti-Corruption Expertise

Abstract

One of the measures to prevent corruption in Russia is the anti-corruption expertise of regulatory legal acts and their drafts. This is the only measure aimed at eliminating the causes of corruption in the field of lawmaking. The prosecutor’s office is considered to be the most effective body to implement it. The Institute of Independent Anti-Corruption Expertise has not been operational today as far as is necessary. In the course of the research, some prosecutors and accredited independent experts were surveyed. Both groups of respondents proved the effectiveness of this preventive measure, noting that it needs improving. As part of the study, the author attempts to identify the problems faced by independent experts, as well as the prosecutors themselves, and proposes ways to solve these problems and enhance independent experts by means of the prosecutor’s office activities. The study showed that it is necessary to improve the conceptual apparatus of the legal institution (e.g., the lack of definitions of “corruption” and “corruptogenic factor”), the mechanism of interaction between prosecutors and independent experts when conducting anti-corruption expertise of both existing acts and projects. Prosecutors can play a coordinating role with a clearer departmental regulation of this activity, take measures of moral encouragement of independent experts, most actively report on their work in carrying out anti-corruption expertise, while involving independent experts in it. Additional regulation of this activity is necessary at the level of both federal law and organizational and administrative documents of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation. According to the study, 63% of independent experts named the improvement of the mechanism of their participation in anti-corruption expertise as one of the main factors in enhancing their activities.