Reflection on the Criminal and Civil Liability on the Environmental Damages in Albania

Abstract

This paper seeks to analyze the form of law enforcement in Albania against environmental crimes and civil liability committed by companies. This research uses the library research method, which collects data from legal material, legislation, literature, and research papers related to this research, processing and analyzing qualitatively. The result shows that there has not been law enforcement against the companies in environmental crime. In 2019, changes were made to the criminal code, where regulations were made on criminal offenses against the environment. Even though we have committed a criminal offense or not, being injured in an environment brings civil liability. Criminal and civil liability seem very similar, but many elements differ. The Albanian legislation, as well as that of other countries, is fully aligned with the Directive "On environmental responsibility, prevention and repair of environmental damage. The environmental legal framework has been drafted as a part of a legal package that aims to enable the transposition of all directives in this domain. The focus of this paper will be directed to the environment and legal framework, which aims to protect the environment by qualifying which kinds of persons' behaviors are considered illicit, in that measure that brings them in front of civil liability or criminal liability. Criminal law enforces the protection of society from crime. Interventions in the environment are considered a crime if the actions of responsible subjects break the balance of the environment . The civil legal framework has yet to make any provisions concerning environmental protection. There exist other legal mechanisms for requiring the damage and seeking compensation. It is worth using the methodological and theoretical methods to analyze two institutes. By using the analysis and comparison method, we address the most critical issues of relevance of research.    Received: 22 April 2024 / Accepted: 30 June 2024 / Published: 5 July 2024