Signs of the concept of „conflict of interest” in the judicial practice of Ukraine

This article is about the problem of understanding the concept „conflict of interest” and its characteristics in the legal positions of Administrative Court of Cassation as a part of Supreme Court of Ukraine. From the article we can understand that these legal positions touch the correct definition of characteristics of private interest, potential and real conflict of interest, finding out people who are subordinated to a person who is authorized to perform state or local self-government functions, and it can causes potential or real conflict of interest. These legal positions can be used in bringing the guilty persons to administrative responsibility under the Code of Administrative Offenses.

The right of the defense to request an explanation of the accusation during the criminal investigation phase

Pursuant to Article 66 paragraph (2) point 1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the accused has the right to know for what deed he is accused […], i.e. to be informed on the nature and cause of the accusation brought against him. If the person is not properly informed about the accusation, he is deprived of the right to ensure the possibility of preparing and exercising his defense, being seriously affected by the principles of a fair trial, guaranteed by Article 6 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. Although the principle governing the exercise of rights by the accused in criminal proceedings guarantees the use of any means and procedures of defense, except those expressly prohibited by law, some prosecutors are reluctant to defenders’ requests to explain the accusation in criminal proceedings, context in which, in most cases, either declares them inadmissible or considers them unfounded. Such an approach does not reconcile the right to a fair trial; or, the clarity of what is set out in the indictment is also linked to the right of the accused to defend himself – as an indispensable element of the protection of the person against arbitrariness. Therefore, in this study, the authors will come up with pertinent arguments to annihilate the vicious practice of prosecutors to disregard the importance of predictability of the accusation in order to ensure the right to defense, as well as avoiding the conviction of the Republic of Moldova by the European Court for European Convention.

Criminal implications of the legal status of members of the governing body and persons carrying out key functions in banks

In some cases, the operation of legislative additions and amendments to the Criminal Code may raise uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of the criminal law. In this regard, the will of the legislator is to be expressed in a manner that meets the recognized criteria of quality of the law, namely: accessibility, predictability and clarity. In particular, the rule of criminal law must be worded with sufficient precision so as to enable the person to decide on his conduct and to reasonably foresee, in the light of the circumstances of the case, the consequences of such conduct. In this article, the authors set out to interpret the last sentence of art. 123 para. (2) of the Criminal Code, i.e. – to determine whether the members of the governing body and the persons holding key positions in the bank can be considered persons authorized or invested by the state to provide, on their behalf, public services or perform activities of interest public and implicitly, if they can be considered public persons, within the meaning of art. 123 paragraph (2) of the Criminal Code, since, before the exercise of responsibilities, the candidatures of such persons must be approved by the National Bank of Moldova, or either, are to be considered persons managing a commercial organization, within the meaning of article 124 of the Criminal Code.

Human dignity - source and foundation of human rights and freedoms in the 21st century

Human dignity is a criterion of appreciation among people, because each of us wants dignity, it comes from our own nature, but it can be achieved in the community of which we are part. Throughout the existence and development of mankind, there have been various situations in which, however, human dignity has been violated. These situations, in turn, in addition to making the problem visible, served as a pillar for inventing new areas of protection of human dignity, such as: from the perspective of unbearable social conditions and the marginalization of poor social classes; unequal treatment of women and men at work; discrimination against foreigners and cultural, linguistic, religious and racial minorities; brutal expulsion of illegal immigrants and applicants today, disability, medicine, etc. In light of such specific challenges, various aspects of the significance of human dignity arise from the multitude of experiences of what it means to be humiliated and deeply hurt. All these have taken to a new level the perception of human dignity and have generated, depending on the stated problem, different legal, international instruments meant to protect the dignity of human being.

Official document: material/immaterial object or product of offenses of forged public acts. PART II

In this scientific approaches are pointed and characterized the internal (content) features of the official document: the material/immaterial object or product of the offence of forged public acts. The official document, regardless of its form, is characterized by a specific content. The specificity of this content is determined by: a) the particularity, according to which the official document is in circulation due to the exercise by public person or by person with a dignity position of their service attributions and b) the particularity, according to which the official document is an act with legal relevance, being apt to lead to the appearance, modification or termination of some legal relations. It is also pointed that in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Moldova, only the official document, not the private one can be a material/immaterial object or product of the offenses of forged public acts.

Implementation of the proportionality test during the search process and the collection of evidence

As a means of collecting materials, the search and seizure of objects and documents is of undeniable importance in criminal evidence, providing valuable data that serve to establish the existence or non-existence of the crime, to identify the perpetrator, to establish guilt and other circumstances essential to the just settlement of the case. The present study, in the light of the proportionality test, reflects on the application of several evidentiary procedures, based on multiple criteria, in particular, the assessment of the reasonable doubt, the proportionality between the evidentiary procedure used and the degree of the incriminated deed; the relevance of the materials collected as a result of the evidentiary procedure and the excessive use of force, in carrying out the search.

Persons who can be criminally liable for handling an event and for arrangement bets

In the Republic of Moldova, individuals and legal entities, respectively, can be held criminally liable for handling an event and for arranged bets. It was found that the subject of the offense of arranged betting has the special quality of a person who knows with certainty about the existence of an agreement regarding the cheating of the betting event. It is also not excluded that the organizer of the arranged bet may be the organizer of the bet. In fact, these games of chance can only work and be maintained if the majority of those who bet, lose more than they win. Last but not least, it has been established that those who commit harmful acts in cyberspace, who are liable to criminal liability for handling an event and for arranged bets (and not only), cannot remain incognito. They need to be identified and differentiated from justice.

Mechanisms and legal instruments to ensure air route safety

The legal regulation of ensuring the safety of air traffic in general and of air routes in particular is one of the main concerns of specialists in the field of public international law. The principles and objectives, structure and organization of airspace for safe and efficient operation by analyzing the procedures for the formation and operation of air routes are the subject of this article. Airspace areas with special legal status are an important element of airspace regulation and the process of ensuring air route safety. The analysis of the normative provisions that contribute to ensuring the security of air routes, the risks and threats on the safety of these routes and the mechanisms for preventing and combating them are a priority for specialists in the field of international air law.

A historical and judicial approach on the transformation of the European Communities, the predecessors of the European Union, into an institutional model across the region

The process of European integration has never followed a clear path and the current EU predecessors had never been by far the only efforts of the regional integration in Europe. Created in the 1950s, the European Communities as today’s EU predecessors, have overdue emerged in a very broad area populated by international organizations and various cooperation institutions. This organization, only by matching economic and political challenges, succeeded in becoming the most important cooperation forum between European states. Although in the early 1950s the Western European states could often choose between various forms of regional cooperation, today the EU is frequently seen as the only available at the European level option and the only model of institutional governance.

Application of universal jurisdiction for war crimes in national legislations of states: comparative analysis

The present article is dedicated to the meaning, nature and scope of the universal jurisdiction over war crimes as well as the use of universal jurisdiction in the practice of various states. The universal jurisdiction on war crimes can be considered as one of the cornerstones of the current international law areas, particularly international criminal law and international humanitarian law. In this regard, not only international courts, but also national judiciary applies the concept of universal jurisdiction while overviewing the criminal cases of world-wide importance. The article deals with war crimes and the application of universal jurisdiction, which pose a serious threat to international peace and security. First of all, the essence of universal jurisdiction, the disagreement over its application and, consequently, its importance are touched upon. It has become the responsibility of states to prosecute or to extradite those convicted of war crimes, crimes against humanity, aggression and genocide, regardless of their nationality or home country. Of course, the goal here is to ensure that those convicted of international crimes that are dangerous to humanity go unpunished with no exception. There are many case examples from the national jurisdiction of different states and the article refers to specific court judgements in this regard. Finally, the author considers recommendations regarding the establishment of national legislation what allows more efficient application of universal jurisdiction in connection with war crimes.