TEMPORAL APPLICATION OF CRIMINAL LAW AND THE CHANGING SCOPE OF REGULATORY WRONGFULNESS IN ECONOMIC CRIMINAL LAW

This article examines the problem of determining the temporal limits of criminal law operation in the context of the dynamics of regulatory unlawfulness. Based on the concept of the scope of regulatory unlawfulness, the author analyzes three levels at which this scope can change. The first level is associated with amendments to the text of the criminal law, the second with changes in other branches of legislation to which blanket dispositions of criminal law norms refer, the third with the evolution of legal positions of judicial and other jurisdictional bodies. Drawing on an analysis of scholarly approaches and law enforcement practice the article substantiates the position that the rules of retrospective force (Art. 10 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) should be extended to cases involving changes in regulatory legislation and legal provisions that specify blanket dispositions. A practical example of granting retroactive effect to letters from a regulatory authority is examined, illustrating the risks of criminal prosecution arising from inconsistent interpretations of regulatory  requirements. The author concludes that there is a directly proportional relationship between the scope of criminal unlawfulness and the scope of regulatory unlawfulness