Draft bill #11340 of June 14, 2024 

Cosponsors: the Cabinet of Ministers 

Status: adopted in the first reading 

Who is affected: courts, the Office of the Prosecutor General, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP), and individuals who have committed corruption offenses 

Summary: 

  • a court will have the right to approve an agreement on admission of guilt in corruption cases and impose an additional agreed-upon penalty of a fine even when such a penalty is not prescribed in the sanctions of the relevant articles of the Criminal Code 
  • the amount of the fine will be set within the following limits: 
    • from 204,000 to 2,040,000 UAH — for a criminal offense 
    • from 2,057,000 to 20,400,000 UAH — for a minor offense 
    • from 20,400,000 to 102,000,000 UAH — for a grave crime 
    • from 102,000,000 to 204,000,000 UAH — for a special grave crime 
  • in criminal proceedings regarding corruption offenses, if the suspect or accused reveals another person’s involvement in the corruption crime and this information is confirmed by evidence and/or if full or partial compensation is made for the damage inflicted, the court may approve an agreement on admission of guilt if the parties have agreed on a sentence of imprisonment below the minimum set by the sanction of the relevant article of the Criminal Code 
  • if a sentence lighter than prescribed by law is imposed following the conclusion of an agreement on admission of guilt in corruption offenses, it will not be allowed for the guilty individual to be released from serving such a sentence on probation 
  • in criminal proceedings regarding corruption offenses, the court will be able to make a decision to release the accused or suspect from serving a sentence on probation if the agreement on admission of guilt is approved and the parties have agreed on a release from serving a sentence in the form of imprisonment for no more than eight years or another lighter penalty, as well as agreed on a release from serving a sentence on probation 
  • for corruption offenses, a probation period of two to six years will be set 
  • it will be allowed to impose an additional penalty of property confiscation for cases of release from serving a sentence on probation 
  • it will be allowed to conclude an agreement on admission of guilt between the prosecutor and the suspect or accused in proceedings concerning special grave crimes under the jurisdiction of the NABU, provided that full or partial compensation for the damage is made 
  • in criminal proceedings regarding corruption offenses, the conclusion of an agreement on admission of guilt between the prosecutor and the suspect or accused will be carried out: 
  • in proceedings regarding grave crimes — with the consent of the head of the prosecution authority or their deputy (if the crime is under the jurisdiction of the NABU — with the consent of the Deputy Prosecutor General — Head of the SAP or Deputy Head of the SAP) 
  • in proceedings regarding special grave crimes — with the consent of the Prosecutor General or their deputy (if the crime is under the jurisdiction of the NABU — with the consent of the Deputy Prosecutor General — Head of the SAP or Deputy Head of the SAP) 
  • court proceedings will continue under the standard procedure in the following cases: 
    • refusal of the court to approve the agreement initiated during the pre-trial investigation 
    • refusal of one of the parties to continue court proceedings under the standard procedure 
    • refusal of the court to approve the agreement initiated during the court proceedings 
  • until the court retires to the deliberation room, the parties to the agreement will have the right to make amendments to the concluded agreement 
  • a repeated request for an agreement within one criminal proceeding will be allowed once if the grounds for which the court refused to approve such an agreement the first time have been eliminated. 

What is right: the mechanism for concluding agreements on admissions of guilt regarding corruption offenses is enhanced. 

What is wrong: 

  • the option to release a person from serving a sentence on probation without additional requirements 
  • the option to receive a lighter penalty for committing a corruption offense than the penalty prescribed by the sanction of the corresponding article of the Criminal Code by partially compensating the damage and concluding an agreement on admission of guilt. This will open a legal way to avoid stricter punishment 
  • the option to pay a fine as an additional penalty is a form of a bribe that will destabilize the provisions of the Criminal Code, as it leaves too much discretion for the court. The fine as an additional penalty is already defined in the Criminal Code. 

Alternative solution: 

  • to introduce a requirement to impose an obligation to compensate for damages and disclose other guilty parties in the event of release from serving a sentence on probation 
  • to introduce a requirement to impose an obligation for full compensation of damages and disclosure of other guilty parties in the event when a penalty lighter than prescribed by law is imposed 
  • remove the option of paying a fine as an additional penalty in cases where such a penalty is not prescribed in the sanctions of the articles of the Criminal Code.