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The preventive role of the judiciary in protecting the financial interest of the European Union.
A comparative analysis for improved performance
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According to Article 3, paragraph 3, the liability of the legal person must not exclude the liability of
the natural persons, perpetrators, accessories or instigators to the said facts.
The Protocol doesn’t specify or impose the need for criminal sanctions. Instead, it states sanctions
have to be proportionate and dissuasive in order to be effective and mentions as examples:
o criminal fines;
o non-criminal fines;
o exclusion from entitlement to public benefits or aid;
o temporary or permanent disqualification from the practice of commercial activities;
o placing under judicial supervision;
o a judicial winding-up order.
 The OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business
Transactions, 1997 4, stipulates in Article 2 that “each Party shall take such measures as may be
necessary, in accordance with its legal principles, to establish the liability of legal persons for the
bribery of a foreign public official”, but it favours the criminal liability of legal persons, by adding in
Article 3.2. that “in the event that, under the legal system of a Party, criminal responsibility is not
applicable to legal persons, that Party shall ensure that legal persons shall be subject to effective,
proportionate and dissuasive noncriminal sanctions, including monetary sanctions, for bribery of
foreign public officials”.
 The Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Environment through Criminal Law, of
4 November 1998, Strasbourg5, builds on the idea that “environmental violations having serious
consequences must be established as criminal offences subject to appropriate sanctions” and
requires ratifying parties (states) to “impose criminal or administrative sanctions or measures on legal
persons on whose behalf an intentional or negligent environmental offence has been committed by
their organs or by members thereof or by another representative” (Article 9 on corporate liability).
 The Council of Europe Criminal Law Convention on Corruption, of 27 January 1999, Strasbourg6,
aiming at the co-ordinated criminalisation of a large number of corrupt practices. According to the
convention, legal entities shall also be liable for offences committed to their own benefit, and shall
be subject to effective criminal or non-criminal sanctions, including monetary sanctions.
 The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized’ Crime, ‘adopted by General
Assembly resolution 55/25 of 15 November 2000 7. States that ratify this instrument commit
themselves to taking the necessary measures in accordance with their legal principles to establish the
liability of legal persons implicated in committing serious crimes involving an organized criminal
group. Regarding the legal nature of the liability of the legal person, the UN Convention states:
“subject to the legal principles of the States Parties, the liability of the legal person may be criminal,
civil or administrative.”
4 Published along with related documents online at
(last accessed 30/10/2017).
5 Official document available online at (last accessed 30/10/2017).
6 Official document available online at (last accessed 30/10/2017).
7 Official document available online at:
(last
accessed 30/10/2017).