The difference between bribery and commercial bribery - SearchInform

The difference between bribery and commercial bribery

 
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In Russia NTRY in the global fight against corruption has caused a number of changes to the Criminal Code articles governing bribe (290 of the Criminal Code), and commercial bribery (204 of the Criminal Code). Their main differences lie in the sphere of interests of the parties to the corrupt transaction and in the sphere of the object of the encroachment.

The main differences between the corpus delicti

Both articles are aimed at combating corruption and have been improved each time after Russia signed another international convention on combating corruption. The latest regulatory changes are in 2016.

The main differences between the two types of crime:

1. The object of encroachment for crimes is different, therefore they are divided into different chapters of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Participants in a corrupt deal in a commercial bribery encroach on the interests of service in business and in public organizations; in a bribe, criminals commit crimes against state power and the interests of the state service.

2. The appearance of the criminal - the recipient of the bribe is different. In commercial bribery, this is a person performing managerial functions in a commercial or other, for example, a public, organization. In the case of an official type of crime, this is an official, a foreign official, or an official of an international organization. Under an official within the meaning of Art. 285 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is understood as a person who performs the functions of a representative of government or holds a responsible position in the executive branch, state-owned companies and state corporations, in the Armed Forces.

3. The third point arises from the difference in the subject - the business variant of the act is strictly national. 290 Art. The Criminal Code allows a Russian citizen to be held accountable for giving a bribe to a foreign citizen. Interesting in this situation is such a type of punishment as deprivation of a foreign official or an official of an international organization of the right to hold certain positions. Obviously, this punishment applies only to positions in Russia, foreign citizens are a priori deprived of this right.

4. The sphere of interests of the recipient of the bribe is different. When receiving a bribe in business, his interests lie strictly in the field of entrepreneurial activity; in the case being compared, he is interested in disrupting the normal functioning of the state apparatus in his own interests.

5. The composition of the requirements of an official or a person performing managerial functions in a private organization is different. In commercial bribery, property benefits are transferred only for certain actions or inaction, and in the case of an offer of bribes to an official, the subject of demands may be general patronage or connivance.

6. A criterion for the legality of actions is introduced. In the event of a business crime, liability will increase if deliberately illegal actions or inaction are required from the recipient of property benefits. Upon receipt of a bribe by an official, the commission of any steps motivated by their payment for a smaller bribe is less punishable than receiving a large bribe.

7. Bribery is always preliminary, it is carried out for the commission of certain actions and before them. The compared corpus delicti can be expressed in the form of preliminary incentives and subsequent gratitude for the actions already taken.

8. The responsibility of the subjects of the crime is differentiated. In case of bribery, both parties to a corrupt transaction bear equal responsibility; in case of a bribe, the responsibility of a state official or officer is always higher than that of an ordinary citizen transferring a bribe.

9. Difference in the severity of punishment. The fine is a multiple of the amount of property received. If it is provided in an especially large amount (more than a million rubles), then the punishment for the culprit may be in the form of a fine exceeding the amount of the received benefit 50 times for a commercial type of act and 100 times for a service one. The maximum amount of punishment in the form of imprisonment also differs. For commercial crimes, it will be 12 years, and if the interests of the public service have suffered, the guilty person faces 15 years.

10. For a small or significant bribe, persons holding public office or heads of local self-government bodies bear more responsibility than other subjects of crime. If it is received on a large scale, the liability is equalized.

Analyzing the differences between bribery and commercial bribery, one can see that the legislator is much more strict about those who commit crimes against the public service than those who receive bribes from neglect of their duties in commercial organizations. At the same time, an interesting point is that the heads of companies with state participation at the level of a controlling stake, operating in the field of exclusively commercial turnover, regardless of the size of their assets and scope of activity, are punished for a bribe just as severely as government officials.

08.12.2020

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