The goal of any company is to achieve success and economic benefits. Entrepreneurs must therefore be aware of the risks associated with their industry. To this end, the economic criminal law proposes to guide corporate environments towards a culture of corporate risk prevention, where everyone can operate in line with the ethics and good practices associated with each industry.

In this sense, Aldana & Abogados suggests analyzing the implications that economic criminal law has on business, in order to highlight the benefits of applying structural adjustments that promote healthy financial environments for companies.

Criminology and Criminal Law in Business

Criminology is the science that studies the causes and circumstances that have to do with crimes of all kinds. And it is a discipline that arises from criminal law, as a method of study, used in function of the clarification of criminal acts. This branch of study is applied to business, directly when a crime occurs, but in recent years has been associated with prevention and awareness in active commercial environments.

Therefore, the study of corporate crime, ways to identify financial crimes, and the dissemination of strategies to mitigate infractions have been part of the most popular trends in countries with high fiscal controls. This is because companies and the people who are part of them must ensure the legality of the commercial and financial activities they carry out in their industry. At the same time they comply with a series of requirements, which are part of international controls, when expanding business opportunities in international markets.

How does criminal law regulate the criminal culture within companies?

In view of the technological development of the region and the interconnection we live in today, Latin America has expanded its trade to other parts of the world. Business opportunities have become almost infinite, as well as the risks associated with economic crimes, environmental crimes, human rights violations, among others. Therefore, the responsibility of each of the organizations depends on its members, and how the financial environment in which their practices operate, regardless of the industry in which they are operating. In these cases, in order to apply theories and concepts associated with criminal law in the daily reality of companies, regulations, manuals, inspections and specific procedures are established in each of the activities.

These practices help the company's senior management and the board of directors to monitor the professional practices within the organization. In this way, it is easier to detect practices that may be associated with a criminal act within the organization. Or it serves to regulate and prevent situations in case of detecting behaviors outside good operational practices by any employee.

What are the best practices for corporate crime prevention in Venezuela?

The best way to preventing corporate economic crime in Venezuela is through compliance programs. There are different types of certified programs that can provide confidence and assurance that a company is operating under the economic criminal law. To apply for one in your company, you must contact a team of lawyers specialized in corporate complianceand advise you on the different possibilities that your organization has in the industry and market where you are operating.

Remember that these compliance programs are a series of procedures to be carried out by all members of the organization, ethical standards and codes of conduct, manuals, workflows, administrative inspections, among others. Although they do not guarantee that the company's practices will not be distorted, they function as indicators for decision making in case of mitigating a fault.

How does criminal law influence business?

Criminal law influences businesses at the moment of establishing the objectives, before applying a regulatory compliance program or corporate compliance. This is so because knowing the reality of the company, the possible risks that are governed based on the legal and criminal framework of the territory where it is located are established. In this way, it can be determined whether it is necessary to design compliance programs focused on the prevention of crimes in subsidiaries and affiliates, in senior management and employees, and crimes against contractors and external parties.

Once these objectives have been established, the company will have a broader idea of the risks involved in offering its services or products in certain markets. At the same time they are growing as an organization, since business success is linked to legality and values that motivate the people who make up the organizations.

If you would like more information or need advice on this and other issues of criminal and commercial law, do not hesitate to contact us at contact us at. We also share with you our social networks so that you can keep updated on the legal topics that are in trend: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter y Linkedin.