PROTECTION OF PROPERTY RIGHTS: SIDE EFFECTS OF ECONOMIC CRIME INVESTIGATION

Abstract

In the democratic countries, one of the main properties of public policy is to ensure the functioning of a stable economy; it requires special attention to the investigation and prevention of economic crime. However, the economic crime investigation can cause certain side effects, such as restriction or deprivation of property rights of individuals and legal entities. That is why the analysis of the peculiarities of the protection of property rights in the economic crimes investigation is particularly relevant. The purpose of the research is to generalize approaches for understanding the economic crime's nature and structure, analysing effective ways to protect property in the economic crimes investigation, as well as the specifics of releasing property from arrest as a way to protect third party property violated in the economic crimes investigation. Materials and methods: a set of general and special scientific methods was used in a study, in particular, the dialectical method; comparative legal method; methods of analysis and synthesis; formal logical (dogmatic) method; statistical method and generalization method. The empirical basis of the study is the cases of the Supreme Court (Ukraine) and the European Court of Human Rights, statistics of the State Judicial Administration of Ukraine for 2017-2019, as well as the authors' own experience as judge of the Supreme Court and the High Specialized Court of Ukraine for Civil and Criminal Cases. Results: there are two main approaches to understanding the essence of the concept of “economic crime” defined, its main features are identified and the system of economic crimes in Ukraine is characterized. It is argued that the application of such types of punishment for serious and especially serious profit-motivated crimes as special confiscation and confiscation of property is consistent with the practice of the ECHR. The case law of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court on determining the jurisdiction of legal disputes on the release of distrained property, used in the investigation of economic crimes, is summarized. Conclusions: for correct protection of the property rights of individuals and legal entities violated during the investigation of economic crimes, the state must ensure the proper functioning of effective legal means of protection of property rights.