Russia

Abstract

Russian anti-corruption legislation generally consists of federal laws, including codified acts. Recent developments in Russian anti-corruption legislation have mainly been aimed at stiffening the penalties for corruption-related offenses and making legal entities carry out their anti-corruption duties more effectively. In the last few years enforcement trends show that Russian law enforcement authorities are increasingly focusing on investigating corruption-related offenses committed by public officials rather than in the commercial sector. Russian law envisages both criminal and administrative liability for corruption-related offenses (save for corporate entities, which cannot be held criminally liable), including a wide variety of penalties that depend on, among other things, the amount of the bribe given and whether there are any aggravating circumstances. There is practically no difference in the way that bribery of domestic and foreign officials is treated under Russian anti-corruption legislation. Broad investigative powers are vested in investigators rather than prosecutors—the latter mainly having the role of monitoring law enforcement authorities’ compliance with the law and representing the state in criminal proceedings in court. No obligation to cooperate with investigators and prosecutors is specifically imposed in the Russian law of criminal procedure, but there are special rules governing participation by persons (including witnesses and injured parties) in criminal proceedings.