The system of sanctions applicable to legal persons in Romania

• In Event: EUROC 11 White-Collar and Corporate Crimes in Context I

Abstract

The system of sanctions provided by Romanian law for legal persons is already 20 years old. While changes have been made in 2006 and 2009, its framework remains largely the same. Meanwhile, the economic landscape of Romania has seen dramatic changes in the past two decades. As with any emerging market economy, companies have multiplied and have grown from corner shops to giant retailer chains and from craftsman workshops to manufacturing conglomerates.
The lack of any meaningful change in the system of sanctions of legal persons in the past 18 to 20 years in Romania must raise some eyebrows. How can a system devised for small-time businesses be efficient when applied to telecom or energy companies?
This is just one of the many issues which concern the current state of affairs in the field of the criminal responsibility of legal persons, along with questions relating to the hidden figure of crime, the knowledge and the resources police and prosecutors can employ for fighting corporate crimes and the general attitude of society towards the responsibility of legal entities.

Author

• George-Alexandru Lazăr, Faculty of Law, University of Bucharest