ITALY Law and Practice Contributed by: Alessandro Pistochini, Francesca Lazzeri, Andrea Gaudio and Guido Stampanoni Bassi, Pistochini Avvocati Studio Legale
commit a crime (lack of mens rea), which is a manda - tory condition for punishment. Another argument that may be used relates to so- called mitigating or exonerating circumstances (see 7.4 Discretion for Mitigation and Aggravation and 4.5 Safe Harbour or Amnesty Programme ). Regarding the legal entity’s liability, see 8. Compli- ance Expectations . 4.2 Exceptions There are no exceptions to the aforementioned defences. 4.3 De Minimis Exceptions In general, there are no de minimis exceptions under Italian Law: a bribe of any value will constitute an offence. The only exception – the relevance of which is, in any case, subject to the court – is if the “advantage” is permitted by law or if its value is very small as, for instance, in the case of a mere courtesy gift (the so-called munuscula). Please note that Presidential Decree No 62 of 16 April 2013 – Regulation, contain - ing the Code of Conduct for Public Employees, pro - vides that gifts or other benefits of modest value are considered to be those whose value does not exceed, as a guideline, EUR150, including in the form of a dis - count. According to Article 323-bis of the ICC, the value of the bribe could also be taken into account by the court as a mitigating factor in determining the quantum of sanction to be imposed (see 7.4 Discretion for Mitiga- tion and Aggravation ). 4.4 Exempt Sectors/Industries In Italy, no sectors or industries are exempt from cor - ruption offences. 4.5 Safe Harbour or Amnesty Programme With reference to corruption crimes, a new exonerat - ing circumstance is provided by Article 323-ter of the Criminal Code in the event of self-incrimination and effective co-operation with the judicial authority (see 7.4 Discretion for Mitigation and Aggravation ).
Regarding the specific exonerating consequence for legal entities arising from the adoption of an adequate compliance system, see 8.1 Compliance Obligations . 5. Penalties for Violations 5.1 Penalties on Conviction Penalties upon conviction for the above offences are different for individuals and legal entities. With specific regard to penalties applicable to legal entities, those arising from criminal offences can be classified as either disqualifying or financial. Pursuant to Article 9, paragraph 2, of Legislative Decree No 231/2001, disqualifying penalties are: • prohibition from carrying out business activities; • suspension or revocation of authorisations, licens - es, or permits necessary for the commission of the offence; • a ban on contracting with the public administra - tion, except for obtaining the provision of a public service; • exclusion from incentives, financing, grants, or subsidies, and possible revocation of those already granted; and • prohibition on advertising goods or services. Pursuant to Article 10 of Legislative Decree No 231/2001, financial penalties are quantified in units (the so-called quotas), ranging from a minimum of 100 to a maximum of 1,000. According to Article 11 of the same Decree, the value of each unit is set between EUR258 and EUR1,549. The penalties for the various offences, when commit - ted by individuals or legal entities, are as follows: Mis - appropriation by a Public Official or a person in charge of a public service – Article 314 of the ICC: • individuals – imprisonment for four years to ten years and six months (or for six months to three years in the event of temporary misappropriation); and • legal entities: a fine of up to 200 units (when the act affects EU financial interests).
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