An acquittal is the most hoped-for outcome of criminal proceedings for a suspect. However, even if upheld in appeal and after coming into effect, the verdict does not guarantee a person a successful resolution of his or her problem.

‘In many cases acquittals are appealed in cassation because the prosecution’s defeat could have seriously adverse consequences for the prosecution officer,’ explains Drozdova & Partners Law Firm Senior Partner Mykhailo Hocharov, who has a record of defending acquittals before the Supreme Court.

For example, to demonstrate the reasons behind such facts the expert refers to Article 8 of the Disciplinary Regulation of the Ukrainian Prosecution Authorities: ‘an acquittal could lead to a disciplinary liability for a prosecution or investigation officer provided that he or she acted negligently or in bad faith during the investigation. ‘Because of such approach, prosecution officers have no choice but to make all efforts to have the verdict reversed,’ says he.

Mr Honcharov discloses some of the arguments most commonly used by the prosecution in cassation appeals to compensate for errors in the organisation of investigations into crimes.

The full text of the publication can be found here.