The Supreme Court proposed to soften the Code of Criminal Procedure for entrepreneurs

The Supreme Court of Russia sent to the State Duma a draft amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure (CPC), which specifies the criteria for choosing a milder measure of restraint for crimes in entrepreneurial activity.

According to RIA Novosti with reference to the press service of the court, the Criminal Procedure Code proposes to clarify the criteria by which a crime will be considered committed in the field of entrepreneurial activity, according to which the accused can be placed under house arrest or bail.

The amendments will also affect members of the board of directors of commercial organizations. Innovations will be applied in cases under articles on fraud, embezzlement, causing property damage by deceit or breach of trust and abuse of authority – Art. 159, 160, 165 and 201 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

It is proposed to consider as crimes in the field of entrepreneurial activity those that were committed “in connection with the implementation of entrepreneurial activity and (or) the management of property belonging to him, used for the purpose of entrepreneurial activity, if such crimes are committed by an individual entrepreneur in the course of carrying out independent, at his own risk, activity, aimed at the systematic receipt of profit from the use of property, the sale of goods, the performance of work or the provision of services, and (or) in the management of the property belonging to him, used for such activities.

On September 18, 2022, the Supreme Court upheld the initiative to reduce arrests for economic crimes. House arrest and bail were recommended as alternative preventive measures. On February 14 this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin declaredthat the use of these preventive measures instead of being sent to a pre-trial detention center for economic crimes should humanize the trial.

Olesya Pavlenko