Offences against administration of justice

The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

Macedonia - Criminal Code 1996 (2009) EN

SPECIAL PART

31. CRIMES AGAINST THE JUDICIARY

Submitting false evidence

Article 366-a

(1) One that in procedure in front of a court or in administrative procedure will submit evidence for which he/she knows that are false, shall sentenced with imprisonment of one to three years.

(2) The sentence stipulated in paragraph 1 shall be imposed on one that will remove or destroy evidence that are significant for a procedure in front of a court or in administrative procedure.

SPECIAL PART

31. CRIMES AGAINST THE JUDICIARY

Giving a false statement

Article 367

(1) A witness, expert, translator or interpreter who gives a false statement before the court or in an administrative, petty offense or disciplinary procedure, shall be punished with a fine, or with imprisonment of up to three months.

(2) The punishment from item 1 shall apply also to a party which gives a false statement when presenting evidence by interrogation of the parties in a process or administrative procedure, and the decision made in this procedure is based on this statement.

(3) If the false statement from item 1 is given in a criminal proceeding, the offender shall be punished with imprisonment of three months to five years.

(4) If because of the crime from item 3, especially serious consequences were caused for the accused, the offender shall be punished with imprisonment of one to ten years.

(5) If the offender calls off his false statement of own volition, before a decision that has come into effect is passed, he may be acquitted from punishment.

SPECIAL PART

31. CRIMES AGAINST THE JUDICIARY

Preventing the collection of evidence

Article 368

(1) A person who with the intention of preventing or hindering the collection of evidence, hides, destroys, damages or makes useless, partially or completely, another's document or object that is serves as evidence, shall be punished with a fine, or with imprisonment of up to one year.

(2) The punishment from item 1 shall apply also to a person who, with the same intention, removes, destroys, damages, shifts or moves a boundary, land-measurement or other sign, regarding ownership, or some other right based on real estate or the rights for the use of water, or to a person who with the same intention falsely sets up such a sign.

SPECIAL PART

31. CRIMES AGAINST THE JUDICIARY

Illegal influence on witnesses

Article 368-a

(1) One who will influence on some person to appear or not to appear as a witness in a procedure in front of a court or in administrative procedure or is called as a witness to give or not to give statement i certain sense, using threat on the life or the body or on the property in greater scope, offering bribe, disruption or in any other way, shall be sentenced with imprisonment of one to three years.

(2) The sentence stipulated in paragraph 1 shall be also imposed to one that, for revenge for the statement given by the person called as a witness, will revoke some right, mistreat or cause physical injury to the person called as a witness or a person close to him/her.

(3) If especially severe consequences occurred on the defendant in criminal procedure or the witness or a person close to him/her suffered severe physical injury, shall be sentenced with imprisonment of one to ten years.

SPECIAL PART

31. CRIMES AGAINST THE JUDICIARY

Unlawful usurpation of objects during search or in a procedure for execution

Article 374

An official person who, during the search of a home, premises or persons, or in a procedure of execution, unlawfully takes away another's movable object, with the intention of usurpation, shall be punished with imprisonment of one to ten years.

SPECIAL PART

31. CRIMES AGAINST THE JUDICIARY

Coercion against a judiciary employee

Article 375

(1) A person who by force or by serious threat, coerces a judge, a jury-judge, a public prosecutor, a public legal officer, or their deputy, to do, not to do, or to endure something, shall be punished with a fine, or with imprisonment of up to three years.

(2) If during performing of the crime, the persons from paragraph 1, or persons close to them, suffered physical injury, the perpetrator shall be sentenced with imprisonment of one to ten years.

(3) The attempt of the crimes stipulated in the paragraph 1, 2 and 3 is punishable.

Macedonia - Criminal Code 1996 (2018) EN

''Submitting false evidence, Article 366-a''

1) The person that shall intentionally submit false evidence before the court or
during an administrative procedure shall be given a prison sentence of one to three
years.
2) The punishment from paragraph (1) also applies to the person that shall either
remove or destroy evidence significant to the court procedure or administrative
procedure

''Giving a false statement, Article 367''

(1) A witness, expert, translator or interpreter who gives a false statement before
the court, public prosecutor, notary public, a certified enforcer, administrative body
or another body that adopts decisions in a legally determined procedure shall be
punished with a fine, or with imprisonment of up to three months.
2) The punishment from paragraph 1 from the present Article shall apply also to an
expert that provides a false opinion and findings in the cases determined by law, or
upon request of an interested person- requestor.
(3) The punishment referred to in paragraph (1) shall be applied to a party that by
providing evidence in a hearing with third parties, in a litigation or administrative
procedure shall provide false statement on which the decision adopted in that
procedure is based.
4) If the false statement from paragraph (1) from the present Article has been
provided in a criminal procedure, the perpetrator shall be punished:
1) with imprisonment of one to three years if for the criminal act for which a
criminal procedure is being carried out, a punishment of imprisonment of six months
to five years has been prescribed;
2) with imprisonment of one to five years if for the criminal act for which a criminal
procedure is being carried out, a punishment of imprisonment of up to ten years
has been prescribed;
3) with imprisonment of at least four years if for the criminal act for which a
criminal procedure is being carried out, a punishment of imprisonment of twenty
years or life imprisonment has been prescribed;
5) If because of the crime from paragraph 3, of the present Article a conviction was
adopted or there were especially serious consequences for the accused, the
perpetrator shall be punished with imprisonment of one to ten years.
6) If the perpetrator of the act referred under paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of the
present Article calls off their false statement of own volition, before a decision that
has come into effect is passed, they may be acquitted from punishment

''Preventing the collection of evidence, Article 368''

(1) A person who with the intention of preventing or hindering the collection
of evidence, hides, destroys, damages or makes useless, partially or completely,
another's document or object that is serves as evidence, shall be punished with a
fine, or with imprisonment of up to one year.(2) The punishment from paragraph 1
shall apply also to a person who, with the same intention, removes, destroys,
damages, shifts or moves a boundary, land-measurement or other sign, regarding
ownership, or some other right based on real estate or the rights for the use of
water, or to a person who with the same intention falsely sets up such a sign.

''Unlawful usurpation of objects during search or in a procedure for execution, Article 374''

An official person who, during the search of a home, premises or persons, or in a
procedure of execution, unlawfully takes away another's movable object, with the
intention of usurpation, shall be punished with imprisonment of one to ten years.

''Evading prohibitions from security measures and legal consequences from a sentence, Article 376''

1) A person who enables another to perform a certain vocation, professional
activity or function, or other matters, even though they know that this is
prohibited to them by a pronounced sentence, or by legal consequences from a
sentence, shall be punished with a fine, or with imprisonment of up to one year.
2) If the crime from paragraph 1 was committed by an official person, they shall
be punished with a fine, or with imprisonment of up to three years.
3) If the act outlined in paragraph (1) is carried out by a legal entity, it shall be
punished with a fine.

Unlawful usurpation of objects during search or in a procedure for execution Article 374

An official person who, during the search of a home, premises or persons, or in a procedure of execution, unlawfully takes away another's movable object, with the intention of usurpation, shall be punished with imprisonment of one to ten years.

Macedonia - Criminal Procedure Code 2010 EN

PART TWO COURSE OF PROCEDURE
Chapter XXII TRIAL
2. Managing the trial

Article 287
(1) If the accused, counsel, damaged, defence attorney, legal representative, witness, expert, interpreter or another person who participates at the trial, but disturbs the order or does not obey the orders of the Chairman of the Chamber for maintenance the order in the court room, the Chairman of the Chamber will warn him. If the person does not respond to the warning, the Chamber may order the accused to be removed from the court room, but if this concerns the other above mentioned persons, he may not only remove them from the court room but may also issue a fine penalty under Article 74, paragraph 1 of this Code.
(2) After the decision of the Chamber, the accused may be removed from the court room for a period of time, and if he has already been examined at the trial, then he may be removed for as long as the evidence procedure lasts. Before the evidence procedure is completed, the Chairman of the Chamber will call the accused and inform him of the course of the trial. If the accused keeps on disturbing the order and violating the dignity of the court, the Chamber may remove him from the trial again. In that case the trial will be completed without the presence of the accused, and the verdict will be announced to him by the Chairman of the Chamber or the judge- member of the Chamber in presence of a court
clerk.
(3) The counsel or defence attorney who after the punishment continues disturbing the order, the Chamber may exclude him from the further defence i.e. representation of the accused at the trial and in that case the party will be instructed to have another counsel i.e. defence attorney. If it is impossible for the accused or the damaged to achieve it immediately without harming their own interests, or if in case of a compulsory defence a new counsel or defence attorney may not be assigned immediately, the trial will be interrupted and postponed, and to the counsel i.e. defence attorney it will be ordered to pay for the expenses caused by the interruption or postponing.
(4) If the court removes from the court room the damaged as a plaintiff or the private prosecutor or their legal representative, the trial will be continued in their absence but the court will warn them that they may have a defence attorney.
(5) If the public prosecutor or the person who stands for him disturbs the order, the Chairman of the Chamber will inform the competent public prosecutor of that, and he may also cease the trial and from the competent public prosecutor may require another person to be assigned to represent the prosecution act.
(6) When the court punishes a lawyer who disturbs the order, the Bar will be informed of that .

PART TWO COURSE OF PROCEDURE
Chapter XXII TRIAL
2. Managing the trial

Article 289
(1) If the accused commits a crime at the trial it will be proceeded according to provisions of Article 330 of this Code.
(2) If another person commits a crime during the trial, the Chamber may interrupt the trial and after an oral accusation by the prosecutor, may judge the committed crime immediately and may judge that crime after the completion of the initiated trial.
(3) If there are grounds for suspicion that the witness or the expert has given false statement at the trial, that crime cannot be judged immediately. In that case the Chairman of the Chamber may order for the statement of the witness i.e. expert a special minutes to be constructed which will be delivered to the public prosecutor. The minutes will be signed by the heard witness i.e. expert.
(4) If the criminal cannot be judged immediately who is prosecuted ex officio, the competent public prosecutor will be informed of that due to the further procedure .

Rome Statute

Article 70 Offences against the administration of justice

1. The Court shall have jurisdiction over the following offences against its administration of justice when committed intentionally:

(a) Giving false testimony when under an obligation pursuant to article 69, paragraph 1, to tell the truth;

(b) Presenting evidence that the party knows is false or forged;

(c) Corruptly influencing a witness, obstructing or interfering with the attendance or testimony of a witness, retaliating against a witness for giving testimony or destroying, tampering with or interfering with the collection of evidence;

(d) Impeding, intimidating or corruptly influencing an official of the Court for the purpose of forcing or persuading the official not to perform, or to perform improperly, his or her duties;

(e) Retaliating against an official of the Court on account of duties performed by that or another official;

(f) Soliciting or accepting a bribe as an official of the Court in connection with his or her official duties.

2. The principles and procedures governing the Court's exercise of jurisdiction over offences under this article shall be those provided for in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. The conditions for providing international cooperation to the Court with respect to its proceedings under this article shall be governed by the domestic laws of the requested State.

3. In the event of conviction, the Court may impose a term of imprisonment not exceeding five years, or a fine in accordance with the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, or both.

4.

(a) Each State Party shall extend its criminal laws penalizing offences against the integrity of its own investigative or judicial process to offences against the administration of justice referred to in this article, committed on its territory, or by one of its nationals;

(b) Upon request by the Court, whenever it deems it proper, the State Party shall submit the case to its competent authorities for the purpose of prosecution. Those authorities shall treat such cases with diligence and devote sufficient resources to enable them to be conducted effectively.