THE LEGAL ENTITY: ACTIVE SUBJECT OF THE CRIME

Abstract

In recent times there was an increase in criminality among legal entities due, in particular, to economic and financial factors. In this paper I wish to find an answer to the question of whether this form of criminal liability of the legal entity is necessary and at the same time effective by strengthening the current and contemporary legislation both in our country and in other countries. Since fiscal or financial crime is in a continuous procedure of amplification, it is important to be informed about the repercussions that the criminal acts committed by legal entities attract. The Romanian legislator has seen the problem of holding the legal entity criminally liable ever since the amendment of the Old Criminal Code by Law no. 278/2006 updating our legislation with the European one. Therefore, the criminal liability of the legal entity is currently regulated in the national legislation by the Criminal Code in force. This work offers a broad vision on the nature, respectively the foundations of the legal liability of the legal entity as an active subject of the crime, on the beginnings and evolution of this institution. I consider that a clear delimitation of the form and content of the guilt is necessary when we talk about the legal entity, a clear regulation of the intention and recklessness of the legal entity in order to be able to identify a different guilt of the natural person as an organ, so that in the situation where the natural person cannot be identified or cannot be criminally liable, the criminal liability of the legal entity can be engaged. The work is structured in such a way as to offer us both a theoretical and a practical part in order to better understand the issue of criminal liability of the legal entity. The case in this paper is from the judicial practice of the Economic Crime Investigation Service within the Bihor County Police Inspectorate.