description
The basic principles of minor offences liability of responsible persons are regulated by the Minor Offences Act (ZP-1). However, in each case (each minor offence), the provisions of specific legislation, in our case, the Companies Act (ZGD-1), must also be taken into account. Concerning the liability of persons liable for minor offences, a distinction must be made between the responsible person, who is authorised to carry out certain work for the legal person, and the liable person, as a managerial or supervisory body, who is obliged to exercise supervision that may prevent a minor offence. While in the first case, the responsible person is liable for the offence committed in the course of their work (as a direct perpetrator) and under the rules of liability for natural persons, in the second case, the liability of the responsible person for failure to exercise due supervision is, as a rule, only a prerequisite for the "autonomous" liability of the legal person. The criminal provisions of the ZGD-1 provide for the liability of the responsible persons of companies, intermediaries, liquidators, etc., which always also constitutes a condition for the liability of the entities mentioned above as legal persons and also specifically provide for the breaches of the management and supervisory bodies of companies (responsible persons in the strict sense), who in these cases are held individually liable as direct perpetrators. This highlights their role in corporate law and, consequently, their liability for (their own) unlawful conduct.