The (Criminal) Liability of Legal Persons and Heads of Business: Strenghts and Weaknesses of the European Union's Approach

This article aims to analyse the current EU legal framework on the (criminal) liability of legal persons and heads of business, and discuss its strengths and weaknesses. The first section provides some introductory remarks on a recent cross-cutting trend in EU law, which affects both corporate and individual liability, namely the increasing blurring of boundaries between administrative and criminal law in the enforcement of financial and economic policy. The analysis then shifts to the EU rules on corporate (criminal) liability, before briefly discussing whether, in EU legislation, the attribution of liability to legal persons is accompanied
by recognition of their procedural rights. Finally, this contribution examines the criminal liability of heads of business, by focusing on the field of the protection of the Union’s financial interests, which represents a useful case study to discuss the current EU approach.