Individual responsibility of the manager

The article presents the scope of criminal liability for offences against economic turnover, with particular emphasis on the provisions of Article 308 of the Polish Criminal Code. Both the formal grounds for liability and the liability of a manager as well as a person acting without formal authorisation but having a real influence on financial decisions are analysed. The importance of the division of responsibilities within the management board is also pointed out, and it is emphasised that criminal liability depends on the actual scope of a person’s decision-making power. The article discusses the most important positions of doctrine and jurisprudence, emphasising the fact that the criterion of actual management plays a key role in determining liability.

Pursuant to Article 308 of the Criminal Code, for offences specified in this chapter [i.e. Chapter XXXVI of the Criminal Code – offences against economic turnover and property interests in civil law transactions], a debtor or creditor who, on the basis of a legal provision, a decision of a competent authority, a contract or actual performance, deals with the property affairs of another legal person, natural person, group of persons or entity without legal personality shall be liable.
The offences under Chapter XXXVI of the Criminal Code are:

• Article 296 – causing damage in economic transactions,
• Article 296a – bribery in a managerial position,
• Article 297 – credit fraud,
  • Article 298 – extortion of compensation,
• Article 299 – money laundering,
• Article 300 – prevention or reduction of creditor satisfaction,
• Article 301 – harm to a creditor,
  • Article 302 – satisfying selected creditors, bribery in enforcement proceedings,
• Article 303 – destruction of business records,
• Article 304 – exploitation of a contractor, demanding excessive payments from a consumer for the use of capital,
  • Article 305 – disruption of public tenders,
  • Article 306 – falsification of identification marks,
• Article 306a – tampering with or otherwise interfering with the odometer in a motor vehicle,
• Article 306c – removal of a vehicle registration plate, use of someone else’s vehicle registration plate.

Full article is available in Polish here.