Professional Documents
Culture Documents
LIABILITY
IN VIETNAM
Scope of Application
Corporate Crimes
Criminal Liability
Criminal Proceedings
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INTRODUCTION
takes effect
under instruction,
in the name for the benefit guidance or acceptance
the legal entity must be a
“commercial legal
person” of the commercial legal person
(pháp nhân thương mại)
COMMENTS:
It is not clear why the Criminal Proceedings Code 2015 uses the term ‘legal person’ instead of the term ‘commercial legal
person’ for consistency with the Penal Code 2015.
If a legal person is liquidated, merged, consolidated, or split and ceases to exist, only civil obligations (unpaid debts and
property obligations) are transferred.
CORPORATE CRIMES
possibly permanent
suspension
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Crime Maximum monetary fine Temporary suspension Permanent
(billion VND) (months) suspension (yes/no)
Article 188 - Smuggling 15 6 – 36 y
Article 189 - Illegally trafficking goods or money across the border 5 6 – 36 y
Article 190 - Manufacturing or trading banned goods 9 6 – 36 y
Article 191 – Hoarding or, transporting banned goods 5 6 – 36 y
Article 192 - Manufacturing or trading counterfeit goods 9 6 – 36 y
Article 193 - Manufacturing or trading counterfeit food or food 18 6 – 36 y
additives
Article 194 – Manufacturing or trading counterfeit medicines for 20 12 – 36 y
treatment or prevention of diseases
Article 195 –Manufacturing or trading counterfeit animal feeds, 15 6 – 36 y
fertilizers, veterinary medicine, pesticides, plant varieties, animal breeds
Article 196 - Speculating 9 n n
Article 200 - Evading tax 10 6 – 36 y
Article 203 - Illegal printing, issuing or trading of invoices or receipts 1 n y
Article 209 - Deliberately publishing false information or concealing 5 n n
information in securities activities
Article 210 - Using insider information to deal securities 10 n n
Article 211 - Manipulating the stock market 10 n y
Article 213 - Committing frauds in insurance business 7 n n
Article 216 - Evading payments of social insurance, health insurance, 3 n n
unemployment insurance for employees
Article 217 – Violating competition regulations 5 6 – 24 n
a legal person will be subject to criminal liability only when the leader or the management board of such legal person
knows that the relevant individual’s action is illegal and still give instruction, guidance or accept such action
A corporate crime under the Penal Code 2015 is also entitled to time bar limitation
Crime Time limitation
less serious crime 5 years
serious crime 10 years
very serious crime 15 years
especially serious crime 20 years
COMMENTS:
the Penal Code 2015 only classifies the seriousness of crimes committed by an
individual not by a corporation;
it is not clear if rules on re-commencing time limitation apply to corporation
committing a crime;
it may be difficult to determine when a corporate crime is completed since a corporate
crime may involve more than one person.
Institution
Pre- Enforcement
and Prosecution Hearing
institution of judgement
investigation
inspection
activities
notify
handling an
administrative
violation
Government body Competent agency
the interrogator must notify the Procuracy, and the defence counsel of the proposed time and
place of interrogation; and
if conducted at the place of the investigating agency, the interrogation must be video or audio
recorded; if conducted in other places, it will be video or audio recorded at the request of that
legal presentative, competent authorities, or competent persons.
Such time limit may be extended one or twice, depending on categories of crime, in accordance with Article 172.2 of the
Criminal Proceeding Code 2015 due to the complication of the case upon decision of the competent Procuracy
or
requiring suspending the charged
prosecution investigation corporation
defense counsel
Chief
7 days Judge
Acceptance Preparation
Opening
procedure of
Court Court Enforcement
of the case for trial judgment of judgement
court trial trial
1 to 4 months maybe
protest appeal
• examine material
evidences
The Court
• listen to statements of vs
procurator defense counsel
the crime has been committed but has not cause damages or the damage
is immaterial
the legal person has actively cooperated with the competent authorities
in uncovering the crime or during the criminal proceeding
2. a mitigating factor
(e.g., a mean to
prevent or mitigate
the damages caused
by a crime)