The role of the plea agreement in ensuring compliance with the reasonable term of the criminal process

• In Event: Sentencing 8. Novel Approaches in Sentencing Research

Abstract

The institution of the plea agreement was introduced for the first time in the Romanian legislation starting from January 1, 2014. In the statement of reasons, the legislator showed that "the introduction of this institution implies a radical change in the Romanian criminal process. The procedure of the plea agreement does not it not only reduces the duration of the trial of the case, but also simplifies the activity of the criminal investigation. Moreover, one of the most common arguments in favor of this procedure is that of the economic advantage which, to one degree or another, favors almost all parties to a trial, but especially the state, which has the opportunity to save essential financial and human resources. The plea agreement represents an innovative legislative solution that will ensure the resolution of cases in an optimal and predictable term, being at the same time a remedy for eliminating a deficiency of the Romanian judicial system, namely the long duration of judicial proceedings."
The present study aims to analyze, 10 years after the regulation of the plea agreement, how this institution is used by the criminal investigation bodies. We also aim to examine to what extent the new legal provisions have led to the shortening of court proceedings and the observance of reasonable time.

Author

• Andrei Viorel Iugan, Bucharest Economic School, Faculty of Law