Court Fine as an Alternative to Criminal Liability

In 2016 the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation was supplemented by article 762 , i.e. an innovative norm on exemption from criminal liability with a court fine. Its novelty is that it provides for: 1) conditional release from criminal liability; 2)the use of a coercive measure against a person who is considered innocent by virtue of the presumption of innocence; 3) its use is associated with the payment of a sum of money to the budget. In addition, the consent of the victim is not required for its application. In practice, there is no uniformity in the interpretation of the new law. The purpose of the paper is to summarize the practice of applying the new norm, conceptualize it and give recommendations on its application. The paper concludes that a court fine is not a liability. Agreeing to pay money to the budget and paying it is a "good deed", a form of making amends for the harm caused by a crime to society as a result of law and order violation. This may be sufficient to release you from liability if there is no victim. The rule on a court fine supplements the norms of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation on active repentance (article 75) and reconciliation with the victim (article 76) and is especially relevant in the absence of the victim, when the application of these articles is problematic. If there is a victim, the harm caused to him (including moral) must be compensated. The fact that the consent of the victim and the Prosecutor is not required for the application of a court fine does not mean that the court has the right to ignore their opinion.

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