Corporate Compliance

The amendment of the Criminal Code in 2010 brought as the main novelty the possibility that legal entities may be criminally liable. Said regulation has been completed and clarified with the LO 1/2015 amending the Criminal Code. By virtue of these amendments to the Criminal Code, a legal person may now incur criminal liability for certain offenses committed in its name or on its behalf and for its benefit by its legal representatives or persons who are authorized to make decisions on behalf of the legal person or who have organizational and control powers within the legal person. Similarly, the legal person may be criminally liable for certain crimes committed by those who, being subject to the authority of the former, have been able to carry out the acts because of a serious breach by the former of their duties of supervision, monitoring and control of their activity.

For these cases, the Criminal Code provides for various types of penalties that may be imposed on legal entities: fines, dissolution of the legal entity, suspension of its activities, closure of its premises, prohibition to carry out the activities in the exercise of which the crime has been committed, favored or concealed, disqualification from obtaining public subsidies and aid, from contracting with the public sector and from enjoying tax or Social Security benefits and incentives, or the penalty of judicial intervention. According to the Criminal Code, in order to avoid the imposition of such penalties, the legal entity must have implemented a Criminal Risk Prevention Program, i.e., an organizational and management model that includes surveillance and control measures suitable for preventing the commission of crimes within its organization.

Para dar respuesta a las nuevas exigencias del Código Penal, SMK Advocats, además de defender y asesorar penalmente a particulares, ofrece también el servicio de defensa de personas jurídicas involucradas en procedimientos penales. Likewise, SMK Advocats offers both the necessary prior advice to calculate the risk of committing crimes that weighs on the legal entity, as well as the service of implementation in the legal entity of the necessary Criminal Risk Prevention Programs.