New Czech Criminal Act Amendment repeals individual crimes of "Sharing", "Sharing out of Negligence" and introduces crime of "Obstruction of Justice"

Czech Republic

On 1 February 2019 the Amendment to the Criminal Act and Criminal Procedure Code (the “Amendment”) came into effect in the Czech Republic.

The Amendment was passed as a reaction to international criticism which deemed Czech legislation as fragmented and insufficient. The Amendment responds to such criticism by abolishing individual crimes of Sharing and Sharing out of Negligence, and incorporates these crimes into Legalisation of Proceeds of Crime and Legalisation of Proceeds of Crime of Negligence.

The newly formulated and relatively comprehensive factual basis of the two aforementioned crimes now explicitly cover all types of conduct, which could fulfil the definition of money laundering as specified in relevant international treaties.

The Amendment also, among other things, introduces a new crime of Obstruction of Justice (s. 347a). This newly introduced crime primarily sanctions conduct whereby evidence of material importance is submitted for a decision with knowledge that it is counterfeit or has been altered. Additionally, the crime also sanctions provision, offer or promise of benefit for committing a crime of False Accusations, False Testimony and False Expert Opinion or False Interpretation.

If you have any questions related to the Amendment, please do not hesitate to get in touch with one of our contacts.