Reconciliation of parties in criminal proceedings: procedure and features

Any conflict can be resolved peacefully, even if it involves a criminal offense. According to the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, there are several ways to terminate a criminal case without bringing the defendant to justice.

One of the most common methods is reconciliation. Reconciliation of the parties in criminal proceedings solves the problem of criminal prosecution of those persons whose behavior no longer poses a danger to society, and the subject of the dispute and conflict is resolved jointly with the injured party.

If the victim has no claims against the defendant, and the criminal incident is completely resolved, the criminal case can be terminated after reconciliation of the parties.

What does reconciliation of the parties mean?

This term should not be taken literally. Reconciliation of the parties in a criminal trial does not mean that the victim has forgiven his offender, does not hold a grudge against him and has forgotten about the crime.

The defendant only compensates for the damage caused or compensates for the harm, and the victim no longer has any claims. Only in this case is it considered that the parties have reconciled.

Reconciliation of the parties is the absence of claims against the offender after he has made amends.

The difference between a judicial fine and reconciliation of the parties

The unconditional and main difference between the termination of a case with a judicial fine and the termination after reconciliation of the parties is the obligation in the first case of the person released from liability to pay a certain amount of money to the state, the amount of which will be determined by the court.

In the second option, nothing needs to be done; the criminal prosecution ends with the issuance of an appropriate decision by an authorized person. That is, the absolute advantage of reconciliation is the absence of the need to pay a fine.

Terms of reconciliation

The current Code of Criminal Procedure provides for the possibility of launching a procedure for reconciliation of parties in criminal proceedings in relation to a citizen who is accused or suspected of committing an illegal act. Such a decision, guided by Article 25, can be made by the investigator, after agreeing on the procedure with the prosecutor. There is a list of conditions that must be met in order to make such a decision:

An unlawful act committed by a citizen caused damage of insignificant or moderate severity. The criterion for a crime that can be closed upon reconciliation of the parties is the length of punishment. For illegal acts of similar categories, 3 and 6 years, respectively.
The man committed a crime for the first time in his life.
The criminal and the victim are completely reconciled.
Compensation for damage caused by the actions of an attacker.
The victim must submit a written statement of consent to terminate the criminal prosecution of the suspect.
A citizen suspected of committing a crime wants the criminal case against him to be closed.

Conditions for termination

The above rules regulate the conditions for termination of a criminal case in connection with the reconciliation of the parties. Despite their apparent simplicity, each of them needs explanation.

Committing a crime for the first time

This concept includes a number of possible options when, in practice, it is considered that the person brought to justice has committed a crime for the first time:

He committed one or more acts, but he was not convicted for any of them.
He had previously committed a crime and was convicted, but on the day the new crime was committed, the sentence for the first crime did not come into force.
The previous sentence came into force, but by the time the new crime was committed, any of the circumstances had arisen that annulled the consequences of criminal prosecution for it (expungement of a criminal record or its removal, etc.).
A conviction was passed for another act, it entered into force, but by the time the new one was committed, the crime of the previous one had been eliminated. That is, what was previously a crime was no longer considered such due to changes in the law.
Previously, a person was held accountable under the Criminal Code, but was subsequently released from it by terminating the case against him.

Consequently, it is impossible to obtain exemption from responsibility for reconciliation with the victim in the event of an unexpunged or unexpunged conviction, much less a recidivism.

Gravity of the act

To determine whether it is possible to terminate the case due to reconciliation with the victim, it is necessary, among other things, to determine to which category the crime committed belongs.

The crime committed must be classified as a crime of minor or medium gravity.

Minor offenses include intentional and careless crimes, for which the most severe punishment is no more than 3 years in prison.

of medium gravity :

Intentional acts with a maximum penalty of up to 5 years in prison.
Careless - up to 10.

How to determine severity category

Example No. 1

Let's take a fairly common article. 119 of the Criminal Code, which punishes the threat of murder. Firstly, the crime is committed intentionally. Secondly, the sanction of Part 1 of this article establishes the maximum possible punishment in the form of imprisonment for a period of 2 years, and the second - 5 years. Consequently, the act under the first part of this article is of minor gravity, and under the second – medium.

Example No. 2

Act under Art. 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which punishes violation of traffic rules with various consequences for the victim - a careless act.

According to Part 1 of this article, when the consequences of criminal actions are serious harm to the health of the victim, the most severe punishment is 2 years of imprisonment. That is, this is an act of minor gravity.
Under Part 2, acts with the same consequences are punishable, but when leaving the scene of an accident or committing them by a person in a state of intoxication. Here the punishment can reach up to 7 years in prison, respectively, this is an act of moderate gravity.
Part 3 punishes violations that lead to the death of one victim; they carry a penalty of up to 5 years in prison, therefore, they are also classified as crimes of moderate gravity.

Thus, subject to all other mandatory conditions, termination of cases under these articles by reconciliation of the parties is possible.

A similar algorithm for determining the severity of the crime and compliance with this condition for reconciliation of the parties is also relevant for other articles.

Reconciliation with the victim

The fundamental role in this matter, of course, belongs to the victim. The likelihood of stopping the prosecution of the person who committed the crime depends on his expression of will.

Reconciliation is achieved between the victim and the alleged perpetrator. In what way - an apology, some kind of help, compensation for damage, material or moral - reconciliation will be achieved does not matter.

The alleged perpetrator must play an active role in this matter, trying in any possible way to neutralize the consequences of the crime committed. In fact, his task is to achieve the forgiveness of the victim.

Some features:

If the victim has not reached the age of majority , his interests in criminal proceedings are protected by legal representatives. When the opinion of such a victim regarding the possibility of reconciliation with the offender differs from the opinion of the representative, the court takes into account the position of the victim. That is, if a minor does not want to put up with the criminal, the case is not terminated on this basis.
If the victim died as a result of a crime or death occurred during the proceedings for other reasons, his procedural rights, including reconciliation with the opposing party, pass to close relatives - one or several at once.
If a crime was committed by several people , criminal prosecution can be terminated only in relation to those who have made peace with the victim. If reconciliation is not reached with the others, persecution against them continues as usual.
If there are several victims , a person who has reconciled with everyone can be released from liability. If agreement is not reached with at least one person on this issue, release from liability for reconciliation is excluded.

Solving the issue of damage and harm

The next mandatory condition is making amends for the harm caused to the victim. It involves compensation for property damage and any other means of restoring the rights and interests of the victim that were violated by the suspect/accused of committing a crime.

Damage is considered to be material harm that can be compensated in kind by the transfer of similar property, its monetary equivalent, restoration of damaged objects, compensation for expenses incurred (for example, for treatment, special food, rehabilitation, etc.).

To make amends means to compensate for moral suffering (with property or a specific amount of money), apologize, or take other measures designed to compensate for the violated rights and interests of both the victim in particular, and society and the state in general.

How the damage caused will be repaired and the amount of compensation is determined solely by the victim. At the same time, compensation options should not violate the law and cause harm to third parties.

Compensation for damage and reparation of harm can be made not by the person who committed the crime himself, but also by any other person at the request or with the consent of the perpetrator. Promises and any obligations to do so in the future are not taken into account.

Reaching an agreement with the injured party

For the accused, reconciliation of the parties in criminal proceedings with the injured party means the following actions:

Unconditional repentance.
Official apology.
Compensation for material and moral damage caused.

The main difficulty is determining the exact amount of compensation payments. They are established by mutual agreement of the parties. They must be justified and correspond to the level of harm caused.

The difficulty in determining the amount of compensation arises when determining the moral damage caused. As a result of the crime, the injured party may receive psychological trauma and assess the damage, which can be quite problematic. Negotiations between the parties to the conflict may reach a dead end due to demands for an inflated amount of compensation, which the suspect cannot pay under any circumstances.

To exclude such a situation, each party must provide justification for its position on this issue. If it is impossible to make a decision that suits both parties, it is necessary to involve a mediator from among lawyers who specializes in such issues.

Reconciliation procedure

The process in question must occur according to a certain algorithm:

A reconciliation agreement was concluded between all participants and parties to the incident.
The injured party submits an application to the judicial or investigative body about its readiness to reconcile.
The competent authorities make an appropriate decision on the possibility of terminating the criminal process.

When a preliminary agreement is reached regarding compensation for damage caused, difficulties may arise in the process of making an appropriate decision by executive authorities.

The investigator or judge may reject the victim's request to terminate the criminal prosecution. Such a decision is made by the judge if there are objective reasons that the suspect should not be released from criminal punishment for the crime committed. The law does not specify that full repentance is a mandatory requirement for reconciliation, but based on the terms of the other requirements, it is an integral part of the process.

Controversial situations

There are crimes where the victim is a representative of the state and, in addition to his personal rights and interests, harm is caused to the interests of the state - this is a feature of the object of criminal attack in such acts. Such a victim is not vested with the authority to “forgive” on behalf of the state.

This category includes, among others, common acts under Part 1 of Art. 318, punishing violence against a representative of the authorities, 319 – for insulting him and others.

However, the law does not directly prohibit the termination of such cases through reconciliation with the victims. State prosecutors object to such a decision for the above reason, but the courts, having established compliance with the necessary conditions, the nature and method of making amends, terminate such cases.

At what stage is reconciliation possible?

Legislatively, reconciliation of the parties as a basis for termination of a criminal case is possible at any stage of criminal proceedings.

Pre-trial reconciliation of the parties is carried out by investigative or inquiry authorities on the basis of submitted statements of intention to reconcile on both sides. Judicial reconciliation of the parties in a criminal case is carried out on the basis of the same statements, but already addressed to the judge hearing the case.

As a rule, in practice in 2021, even if the parties wrote a statement to the investigator and expressed their intention to reconcile as part of investigative actions, the court will still terminate the case.

Also read: Lawyer under Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation: can he help and what is his work?

Arriving at the first court hearing, the defendant and the victim will have to again document their intention.

After the judge pronounces the verdict, there will be no opportunity for the parties to reconcile.

Does reconciliation require a criminal record?

Whether the reconciliation of the parties in a criminal case is considered a criminal record is an incorrectly formulated question. In fact, when the parties reconcile, the criminal case is terminated.

This means that the defendant does not change his status to convicted. Based on this, there is no criminal record in this case.

However, information that a specific subject was prosecuted under this article will remain. This information is contained in the Information Centers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Upon request from police or court officials, this information will be provided by these centers.

Information from the Information Centers indicates that the criminal case was terminated on the basis of the article of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation on reconciliation of the parties.

How does reconciliation happen in court?

The procedure for reconciliation of parties in a criminal case is strictly regulated.

In order to carry it out, firstly, the parties need to appear at the court hearing. If one of the parties to the case avoids appearing, reconciliation will not take place.

The procedural procedure for reconciliation of the parties occurs in several stages:

Before the court hearing, the parties to the case are required to fill out an application for reconciliation addressed to the judge. It must indicate how the harm or damage was compensated. If beatings took place, usually the participants in the process write that an apology was made.
As part of the consideration of a criminal case, the parties must file a petition to include a statement of reconciliation in the case materials. If none of the participants in the trial objects to the inclusion of documents, the judge will grant the request.
The judge will definitely ask questions to the defendant and the victim about whether they agree to reconciliation and whether the type of compensation or apology that was provided by the perpetrator is enough for the victim.
If, according to all the criteria, reconciliation of the parties in the case is possible, the judge will retire to the deliberation room, where he will make a decision to terminate the criminal case. It will be made clear to the parties that this is not a rehabilitative basis. Copies of the decision will be given to the victim and the defendant.

When several persons were involved in a crime, the judge can release from criminal liability only those who have compensated for the damage upon reconciliation of the parties.

If at least one of the victims is against reconciliation of the parties, the criminal case will not be terminated on this basis.

If you do not know whether your crime is classified as mild or moderate and whether reconciliation is possible, seek help from a defense attorney or ask a judge for this information.

Although usually, if reconciliation of the parties is possible, the judge’s staff will ask you to fill out an application for reconciliation before the court hearing.

If the defendant is a minor, the statement of reconciliation, in addition to him and the injured party, will be written by the legal representative of the minor.

Petition for reconciliation of the parties

There are no clear requirements for the preparation of an application or petition for reconciliation of the parties in the laws. Such a petition can be submitted not only to the defendant, but also to his defense attorney on behalf of the defendant.

The petition for reconciliation must include the following information:

Name of the court and judge to whom the application is addressed;
Full name of the defendant, his contact information;
The essence of the request with reference to legislative norms;
Indication of the grounds for termination of the criminal case;
A record that the victim has no claims against the defendant;
Date and signature.

If there is confirmation of the fact of compensation for damage, you need to attach these documents to the application . This is necessary so that the judge does not have questions about the validity of the petition.

Algorithm for the reconciliation procedure

In order for a criminal, civil or administrative case to be terminated upon reconciliation of the parties, a number of sequential steps must be completed:

If there are reasons that the court considers valid, the person guilty of the crime is given a deferment of execution of the sentence or serving the sentence.

For example, women who have a young child are given a deferment until the child reaches the age of majority. Read more in this article

the parties come to a consensus on reconciliation;
after this, the parties to the conflict draw up an agreement on the amount and timing of repayment of the material and moral damage caused to the victim, about which a written obligation is drawn up and notarized. Another option is for compensation to be paid to the injured party by the relatives of the perpetrator. In any case, compensation must be supported by documents, i.e. receipts, bank statements, checks, etc.;
then the injured party to the conflict or its legal representative writes a statement of reconciliation. You can read more about filling out an application in the next subsection of the article;
the application is submitted to the authority that has jurisdiction over the case at the time of reconciliation. For example, if reconciliation took place during the period when an inquiry into the case was being conducted, then the application is submitted to the investigator, if during the investigation, then to the investigator, if at the trial (but before a decision is made), then to the judge of the given process. Statistics of judicial practice on reconciliation of parties indicate that the largest number of terminations of cases in connection with these circumstances occur during reconciliation during the trial;
The inquirer or investigator cannot independently make a decision to terminate the case due to reconciliation. Therefore, they officially convey information about the reconciliation of the parties to their immediate superiors. It is at this level that a decision is made on whether the case can be closed. If the decision is positive by the court, the prosecutor's office, or the investigative committee, the case is closed. Information about this is brought to the attention of the parties to the conflict. If, at the investigation stage, the authorized officials considered that the case cannot be dismissed, then the application for reconciliation can be submitted a second time at the trial stage;
the perpetrator of the offense (if he was not the initiator of the peace agreement) must be informed of the victim’s intention to reconcile. The perpetrator of the incident has the right to refuse reconciliation, thereby retaining the right to be acquitted of this crime. In the event of an acquittal, even the mention of the fact of involvement in a specific case is removed from the perpetrator.

Reconciliation during civil proceedings

One of the most common types of reconciliation of the parties is the termination of a criminal case with the use of a settlement agreement as a result of successful negotiations, which is regulated by the Code of Civil Procedure, Article 39, Part 1. Mandatory requirements that allow reaching a compromise on the current situation are:

Article 173 and 326.1 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the reconciliation procedure is possible in two instances.
The conclusion of an agreement must satisfy the current rules of the Code of Civil Procedure and not infringe on the rights and interests of other persons.
The process will be considered completed after the application is approved by the court. As a result, the parties will not have the opportunity to re-apply to the court on this issue.

Also read: Types of punishment for theft under Article 158 Part 3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

An alternative option for reconciling the parties is the mediation process, which implies the participation of a qualified specialist in resolving the dispute. At the end of the process, a mediation agreement is signed, for which the following requirements must be met:

The process can be initiated by interested parties or a judicial authority.
During the necessary steps according to the procedure, consideration of a civil case is not carried out. Regulated by Article 169 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
Execution of the agreement is allowed exclusively on a voluntary basis, in accordance with Federal Law No. 193, part 2, article 12.
An agreement accepted and agreed upon by all parties can be used as a settlement agreement, which is approved by a judicial authority.

In the Russian Federation, the method of mediation is not often used in civil proceedings. This is due to innovations that are incomprehensible to many citizens.

Is it necessary for the victim to participate in the court hearing?

This can sometimes be difficult. Most judges insist that the victim be present in person and express his will in person. Its absence may be grounds for refusal to reconcile the parties. The practice in Moscow in this regard is disappointing. Even if there is a statement at the investigation stage, but in the absence of the injured party in the trial itself, the courts do not reconcile.

Moreover, it happens that they take a statement from the victim that he has been notified of the date of the court hearing, that he is not against the special procedure, but they do not specify the desire to reconcile. Therefore, it is very important that the lawyer ensures the voluntary appearance of the injured party at the court hearing. Notified me on time, called again and reminded me.

This is not difficult, but sometimes victims do not appear in court due to simple forgetfulness. An attentive lawyer should not allow this to happen.

If it so happens that the court of first instance was held without the victim, ensure his appearance in the court of second instance. The Court of Appeal provides conciliation even in such situations. There is such a practice in Moscow.

Also, a lawyer should always pay attention to the power of attorney of the victim’s representative (for example, if the victim is a legal entity, as was the case here). Judges like it when the authority to seek reconciliation is clearly stated there.

Explanation of the terms of reconciliation

A citizen who has committed an unlawful act for the first time is characterized by the following criteria:

He has never been prosecuted before.
If earlier, a sentence was passed against the citizen, but it did not receive legal force.
For a previous illegal crime, the statute of limitations has already expired.
The existing criminal record has already been fully expunged or removed.
Due to the changes made, the act committed by a citizen does not apply to criminal offenses.
For various reasons, the person was completely released from criminal liability.

Compensation for damage caused by illegal actions is possible in various ways:

Cash.
Providing necessary assistance to the victim.
A public apology for a crime committed.
Other measures that restore the lost interests of the injured party.

All possible methods of compensation for damage must be legal and not violate the rights of other citizens.

Features of reconciliation in various cases

Depending on the order in which criminal prosecution is carried out (Article 20 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation), the termination of proceedings in connection with the reconciliation of the parties has a number of features.

Cases of private and private-public prosecution

There are only 3 private prosecution cases:

Part 1 Art. 115 – light information on the health of the victim;
Art. 116.1 – beatings committed by a person previously brought to justice under Art. 6.1.1 Code of Administrative Offences;
Part 1 Art. 128.1 – slander.

According to them, proceedings should be terminated if the victim has made peace with the accused. A statement from the victim in this case is an unconditional basis for making such a decision (unless the case falls under those specified in Part 4 of Article 20 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation).

Criminal cases of private-public prosecution are listed in Part 3 of Art. 20 Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation. Among them:

Art. 116 – beatings;
Part 1 Art. 139 – penetration into a home;
Part 1 Art. 146 – copyright infringement, etc.

Although they are classified in the category of gravity for which termination of the case in connection with reconciliation may be possible, it is impossible due to the direct prohibition of the said norm.

Public prosecution cases

Cases about all crimes not mentioned in parts 2 and 3 of Art. 20 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation - cases of public prosecution. The law does not provide for a ban on the termination of such cases if the conditions for reconciliation with the victim are met.

Reconciliation before initiation of criminal proceedings

The consequences of reconciliation between the parties at the stage before the initiation of a criminal case also depend on the order in which criminal prosecution takes place.

Thus, for cases of private and private-public prosecution, a statement from the victim regarding criminal prosecution is required. If it is not there or a statement of reluctance is subsequently received (for any reason, including reconciliation), a criminal case is not initiated.

Closing the reconciliation case

Reconciliation of the parties in a criminal case before trial is allowed. Until the materials collected by law enforcement agencies have been sent to court, the investigator has the right to approve the termination of the investigation. To launch such a procedure, its initiator must enlist the support of the prosecutor. The main thing is that the victim writes and provides an appropriate statement, in which he outlines his desire to reconcile with the attacker. The moment when the reconciliation procedure can begin is not defined by law. This could be the time of:

Investigative actions.
Case consideration.

If the materials of the criminal case are transferred by the investigative authorities to the court, in order to reconcile the parties it is necessary to go through the following stages:

Agree on the amount of compensation that suits the victim.
Wait for the moment of full payment of compensation payments from the criminal.
Draw up and send to the court a petition for consent to reconcile the parties.

When considering the possibility of reconciliation between the parties, the court will necessarily take into account the opinions of all interested parties participating in the process. The accused must provide a counter-statement confirming his desire to terminate the criminal case due to the reconciliation of the parties. After considering all the circumstances of the case, the court will make a decision.

Even if everyone involved in the process wants to dismiss the case, the court may reject the request. Sometimes the accused himself does not want to terminate the investigation, in which case the court will certainly refuse the petition. A person suspected of committing a criminal offense almost always agrees to such a procedure. The reason for rare refusals is the inability to rehabilitate.

What matters are impossible to reconcile?

Already based on the name of the analyzed grounds for termination of criminal proceedings, it follows that it cannot be applied in cases in which there are no victims. In other words, when there is simply no one to put up with, although formally under all other conditions this is permissible.

These are crimes that harm not a specific person or organization, but the interests of society and the state as a whole. For example, these could be crimes prosecuted:

Parts 1 and 2 art. 171.2 – illegal organization and conduct of gambling;
Part 1 Art. 201 – abuse of power in non-governmental organizations;
Part 1 Art. 222 – illegal possession of weapons;
Parts 1 and 2 art. 242 – production and circulation of pornographic materials and other similar things.

Is it possible to withdraw the application?

If a citizen has received a statement from the police department about the commission of illegal actions against him, then it is impossible to take him back. The only option is to officially refuse the application. After registration of the application by law enforcement agencies, reconciliation of the parties is allowed until a criminal case is initiated in two situations:

Until a criminal investigation is launched. If all the conditions for reconciliation of the parties are met, no criminal case will be initiated.
When checking the circumstances of the case during a pre-investigation check. In the vast majority of cases, when writing a statement of reconciliation at this stage of the investigation, the investigators will reject such statements. In most cases, this is due to a desire not to spoil the official statistics on cases brought to court. The next opportunity to close cases of reconciliation of the parties is to file a corresponding petition during the trial.

Also read: What is recidivism in criminal law - is it a new crime?

Such possibilities are permissible for private prosecution cases, including:

Beatings.
Mild harm to health.
Slander.
Other similar acts.

Reconciliation in a special court procedure

This procedure is described in Chapter 40 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation. It presupposes the agreement of the perpetrator of the crime with what he is accused of on all counts and circumstances, the absence of an examination of the evidence and the imposition of a verdict, which can only be guilty.

However, a prohibition on making another decision, including termination of proceedings for reconciliation with the victim, subject to the necessary grounds for this, is not established by law.

Such a decision can be made in a special manner only under the following conditions:

This does not require examining the evidence collected in the case.
The actual circumstances do not change.

If these requirements are not met, it is impossible to terminate the case in a special manner in connection with reconciliation with the victim. In such a situation, the court, independently or at the request of the parties to the trial, can withdraw from the special procedure and consider the criminal case in general, with the examination of the necessary evidence.

Rules for writing an application

If a decision has been made to terminate the criminal case due to reconciliation of the parties, it is necessary to draw up and send to the police department whose officers are conducting the investigation a statement containing the following information:

Personal details and position of the employee entrusted with the investigation.
Full name, residential address, contact information of the person making the application.
The reason why it is necessary to terminate the criminal case: reconciliation of the parties to the conflict due to the lack of claims from the injured party.
All legal acts that allow reconciliation.
Date of compilation and personal signature.

Judicial procedure

There are a number of aspects that are inherent in the process of reconciliation of the parties. The petition can be sent to any stage of the investigation of the case, but the final decision will be made after studying all the circumstances of the case and the data provided by the competent authorities.

The injured party submits a written statement to the judge and briefly states the essence of the petition. The judge clarifies the opinion of all participants in the process on this issue, but their statements are not decisive for the court.

It is mandatory to find out the opinion of the accused. If the public prosecutor opposes the termination of the reconciliation case, the court may make a positive decision on the application and approve the reconciliation of the parties. If during the trial it was not possible to provide evidence of the fact of full compensation for damage, the court will most likely reject the petition.

The decision to reconcile the parties can be appealed by the following participants in the process:

Injured party.
Victim.
Prosecutor.
Defense side.

How the decision is made

The first thing that must happen in order for the consideration of the likelihood of termination of the case for reconciliation with the victim to begin is the receipt of the corresponding application from the victim, which was discussed above.

It is impossible to force him to write such a statement. It must be written voluntarily and consciously. The only way is to achieve reconciliation. Even if the damage is compensated, the harm is smoothed out, there are all conditions other than consent, but the victim does not want the criminal prosecution of his offender to end, there can be no talk of reconciliation.

Reconciliation of the parties before trial at the investigation stage

When a victim’s statement is received during the investigation, all other conditions are present for making a decision, the investigator or investigator investigating the case has the right, but is not obligated, to terminate it under Art. 25 Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation.

In order to make an appropriate decision, the investigator must obtain the consent of his supervisor, and the interrogating officer must obtain the consent of the prosecutor. Without such consent this is impossible.

However, in practice, before the trial, cases of termination of the case by reconciliation of the parties are rare. Investigators and interrogators exercise the right not to make this decision, justifying the refusal to satisfy the victim’s application on the nature and severity of the crime. This happens for the sake of statistics - the indicators of the number of cases sent to court are more important than the indicators of their termination.

Reconciliation of the parties in court

When a victim’s application is received, the case is considered during the judicial hearing and the presence of other conditions is examined.

If they are met, the court, among other things, through questioning the victim, checks whether he wrote a statement voluntarily, whether reconciliation has really been achieved, whether harm and damage have been compensated, and how.

The consequences of termination are explained to the defendant, his consent to this decision is requested, and it must be reflected in writing. Opinions on this matter from other participants in the process are also heard.

If there are no obstacles, the court terminates further proceedings in the case for reconciliation with the victim.

Vera Viktorovna Dolganina

Practicing lawyer with more than 10 years of experience.

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For the court, it is not of fundamental importance whether the case is considered on the merits with a verdict or with the termination of the case on non-rehabilitating grounds. Termination on the grounds in question most often occurs precisely at this stage of the process. The court, unlike the investigative bodies, exercises its right to terminate the case.

Consequences of reconciliation of the parties

The only negative consequence of the process of reconciliation of the parties is the lack of opportunity to rehabilitate. In fact, this means that everyone will have free access to all information about the crime committed. For the defendant, if the criminal case is terminated due to the reconciliation of the parties, a number of restrictions will be imposed throughout his life, including a ban on working in law enforcement agencies, law firms, and the judiciary.

Non-rehabilitative base

There are grounds for rehabilitation after release from future criminal liability.

Rehabilitation the place of work and school, where employees learn about the event.

Reconciliation of the parties is not considered to be the basis for rehabilitation. This norm is enshrined in part 4 of article 133 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation.

This means that in the future the citizen will be released from criminal prosecution and liability , but without measures that involve measures accompanying rehabilitation.

Reconciliation of parties in a criminal case:

Consequences of termination of a criminal case

Rehabilitation of the committed act upon reconciliation of the parties does not take place. That is, in fact, information about the crime committed will always be freely available.

For the defendant, the termination of the criminal case after reconciliation of the parties means that a number of restrictions will be imposed on his future life. In particular, he will not be able to work as a police officer, lawyer, or judge.

If at the investigation stage the parties were refused to reconcile the parties and terminate the criminal case, they have the right to re-file a petition in court.

You can avoid criminal punishment peacefully . To do this, it is only necessary to completely make amends to the victim for the harm caused by the crime.

But it should be taken into account that if the criminal case is terminated due to the reconciliation of the parties, information about the committed act will be retained forever.