Corporate Criminal Liability and Compliance Management Systems: A Case Study of Spain

In Corporate Criminal Liability and Compliance Management Systems: A Case Study of Spain, Santiago Wortman Jofre offers a case study where he examines the way in which Spain understands and implements Compliance Management Systems. Corporate criminal liability has become a matter of controversy in civil law countries since it challenges the traditional principle of societas delinquere non potest, by which corporations cannot be held criminally responsible.

However, corporations have taken a new position in the world’s political agenda, as evidenced by the 2017 G20’s High Level Principles on the Liability of Legal Persons for Corruption. The new trend in criminal law advocates for the criminal responsibility of legal persons and pushes for the implementation of Compliance Management Systems as deterrent for corporate criminality. Santiago Wortman Jofre then presents evidence on the role of criminal justice and the importance of positive stimuli requirements as effective incentives to drive companies to implement compliance programs.