Oheruk I. Specific issues of the legal status of denunciators

DOI: 10.33098/2078-6670.2023.15.27.2.278-284

Purpose. The purpose of the work is to analyze the current legislation regarding the legal status of denunciators and determine the extent to which the legal positions of various legislative acts coincide on this matter. Methodology. The methodology includes a comprehensive analysis and generalization of the existing scientific and theoretical material, as well as the formulation of relevant conclusions and recommendations. The following methods of scientific knowledge were used during the research: terminological, logical-semantic, functional, systemic-structural, and logical-normative. Results. In the process of the research, it was determined that denunciators, as participants in criminal proceedings, emerged in the national legal field due to amendments to anti-corruption legislation. These changes affected the conceptual apparatus, denunciators’ ways and means of informing about possible facts of corruption or corruption-related offenses were identified, denunciators’ guarantees of the legal status were introduced, specific measures for the protection of both denunciators and their close associates were implemented, and the powers of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention regarding cooperation with denunciators and the protection of their interests were expanded. However, certain provisions of anti-corruption legislation, particularly the Law of Ukraine On Prevention of Corruption regarding the legal status of denunciators, and specific provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine regarding the procedural status of denunciators as participants in criminal proceedings, require coordination and improvement. Scientific novelty. In the process of research, it was established that the concept of a denunciator provided by the Law of Ukraine On Prevention of Corruption is somewhat narrower than the analogous concept provided by the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, that in certain cases, may hinder the usage of the full range of protection measures and guarantees for denunciators stipulated by the current legislation. Additionally, it was established that the procedural statuses of a denunciator and a witness in criminal proceedings may not be fully reconciled due to certain inconsistencies between the scope of rights of denunciators regulated by the Law of Ukraine On Prevention of Corruption and the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, respectively. Practical significance. The results of the research can be used in law-making and law-enforcement activities during pre-trial investigations of corruption offenses and offenses related to corruption.

Key words: denunciator, corruption offense, offense related to corruption, witness, applicant, criminal proceeding.

References

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