Criminal Compliance Programs and their Incorporation in the Ecuadorian Criminal Law

Abstract

Ecuador corporate criminal liability was introduced into the legal system in 2014 and is regulated in article 49 of the Ecuadorian Criminal Code. This article was reformed with the "Anti-corruption Law" in February 2021, in which the legislator designed the compliance regulations not as an exemption system, as is the case of Spain legislation, but as a mitigating measure of the penalty for the legal person. The mitigation is based on the existence of integrity systems, standards, programs, and compliance policies, as the legislator calls them. Recent regulations require an exhaustive study, however, this article is a short study of corporate criminal liability and an overview of the requirements listed in the recent reform and the challenges that due reform represent.