Perspectives on Introducing Corporate Criminal Liability for the Crime of Bribery in Uzbekistan
Abstract
Abstract This chapter explores Uzbekistan’s introduction of corporate criminal liability (CCL) for bribery, where criminal liability has largely been levied against individuals. However, the increasing number of businesses, the cultural specificities of excessive gratitude and hospitality, and the rapid growth in various industries call for more sophisticated anticorruption measures, specifically bribery. Here, we discuss current corruption and bribery regulations in Uzbekistan. In addition, we attempt to determine how these regulations work in practice through interviews with representatives from the retail, construction, and marketing sectors. We also analyse modes of CCL, including the identification principle, vicarious liability, and a ‘failure to prevent’ formula, finding that the best option lies in considering cultural, financial, and efficiency features within the Uzbek sociolegal environment. Whilst billion-dollar penalties for corporate crimes are now common in countries where corporate business is booming, questions remain. How will this legal experiment develop further in a developing country where businesses are just beginning to grow, yet struggle to survive given bureaucracy and overregulation? Which factors should be considered when introducing anticorruption measures? Will CCL impose even more regulations on businesses? We attempt to answer these questions here through an analysis of the introduction of CCL in Uzbekistan.