Criminal liability of legal entities for crimes against the efficiency of public administration in Ecuador

Abstract

This is a critical analysis of the responsibility of legal entities in crimes against the efficiency of public administration, which have become more important since the corruption scandal of the construction company Norberto Odebrecht, which revealed several acts of public corruption in different countries of the American continent, including Ecuador, a country in which corruption in the awarding of contracts reached the highest levels of government.

This corrupt practice has been investigated by the Ecuadorian justice system for crimes of bribery, extortion, embezzlement, influence peddling, among others, leading to the determination of the responsibility of several high-ranking public officials, such as: former President of the Republic, former Vice President, Ministers, Assemblymen, Governors and several individuals in their capacity as legal representatives, majority shareholders or agents of different companies considered corrupt.

In this regard, the definitions of personal responsibility in Ecuador will be briefly analyzed, as well as the conventional, constitutional and legal framework applicable to the criminal responsibility of legal persons in crimes arising from public corruption, the criminal responsibility of legal persons from the Comprehensive Organic Criminal Code with emphasis on crimes against the efficiency of public administration.