Public Law
Czech criminal law is currently regulated in particular by the Criminal Code (Czech: trestní zákoník), which codifies substantive criminal law, and by the Criminal Procedure Code (Czech: trestní řád), which is a comprehensive regulatory statute for the criminal procedure.
The two codes are complemented by the statute no. 218/2003 Coll., concerning responsibility of the juvenile (Czech: mladiství) for criminal offences and juvenile courts. A juvenile is a person aged between 15 (the threshold of criminal liability and, logically, also the age of legal consent) and 17.
The Criminal Code statute in force until 2009 was adopted in 1961. It is obvious, that despite amendments made since the revolution, it still conformed to the communist ideology. The newly enacted Criminal Code became effective on 1 January 2010. The Ministry of Justice says it is as an elaborate piece of work boiled down from the experience and knowledge of foremost expert on criminal law and can be proudly compared to modern criminal codes of other democratic countries.
As well as overall organization, the major change is intended to bring us in line with the rest of Europe. The new code balances the punishment and rehabilitation effect on the criminal. On one hand we see the sentences for felony (Czech: zločin) increased from 15 to 20 years, or exceptionally more. On the other a newly created category of misdemenour (Czech: přečin) introduces a host of community sentences (Czech: alternativní tresty), including community payback (Czech: veřejně prospěšné práce) or house arrest (Czech: domácí vězení). The code also legalizes prostitution (it is not included) and outlaws doping.
Lesser offences (eg driving offences) are regulated by Transgression Act and do not usually end up in any court at all.
An addition since 2012, the Criminal Liability of Corporations Act introduced into Czech law legal responsibility of corporations.
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