(Enacted on 21 December 1937, Status as of 1 July 2011)

Title Nineteen: Corruption

1. Corruption of Swiss Public Officials

Active Corruption

Article 322ter

Any person who offers, promises or gives any undue advantage to a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, an arbitrator or a member of the armed forces, for the benefit of such person or any third party, for the commission or omission of an act in relation to his official functions that is contrary to his duties or depends on the exercise of his discretionary powers, shall be liable to reclusion for a maximum term of five years’ or imprisonment.

Passive Corruption

Article 322quater

Any person who, as a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctonnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority or an arbitrator solicits, elicits a promise of or accepts an undue advantage, for his benefit or

that of any third party, for the commission or omission of an act in relation to his official function that is contrary to his duties or depends on the exercise of his discretionary powers, shall be liable to a maximum term of five years’ imprisonment.

Giving of an Advantage

Article 322quinquies

Any person who offers, promises or gives any undue advantage to a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, an arbitrator or a member of the armed forces so that he accomplishes the duties of his position shall be liable to imprisonment or a fine.

Acceptance of an Advantage

Article 322sexies

Any person who, as a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, or an arbitrator solicits, elicits a promise of or accepts an undue advantage so that he accomplishes the duties of his position shall be liable to imprisonment or a fine.

2. Active Corruption of Foreign Public Officials

Art. 322septies

Any person who offers, promises or gives an undue advantage to any person acting for a foreign State or an international organization either as a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, an arbitrator or a member of the armed forces, for the benefit of such person or any third party, for the commission or omission of an act in relation to his official functions that is contrary to his duties or depends on the exercise of his discretionary powers, shall be liable to reclusion for a maximum term of five years’ or imprisonment.

3. Common provisions

Giving of an Advantage

Article 322quinquies

Any person who offers, promises or gives any undue advantage to a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, an arbitrator or a member of the armed forces so that he accomplishes the duties of his position shall be liable to imprisonment or a fine.

Acceptance of an Advantage

Article 322sexies

Any person who, as a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, or an arbitrator solicits, elicits a promise of or accepts an undue advantage so that he accomplishes the duties of his position shall be liable to imprisonment or a fine.

2. Active Corruption of Foreign Public Officials

Art. 322septies

Any person who offers, promises or gives an undue advantage to any person acting for a foreign State or an international organization either as a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, an arbitrator or a member of the armed forces, for the benefit of such person or any third party, for the commission or omission of an act in relation to his official functions that is contrary to his duties or depends on the exercise of his discretionary powers, shall be liable to reclusion for a maximum term of five years’ or imprisonment.

Giving of an Advantage

Article 322quinquies

Any person who offers, promises or gives any undue advantage to a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, an arbitrator or a member of the armed forces so that he accomplishes the duties of his position shall be liable to imprisonment or a fine.

Acceptance of an Advantage

Article 322sexies

Any person who, as a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, or an arbitrator solicits, elicits a promise of or accepts an undue advantage so that he accomplishes the duties of his position shall be liable to imprisonment or a fine.

2. Active Corruption of Foreign Public Officials

Art. 322septies

Any person who offers, promises or gives an undue advantage to any person acting for a foreign State or an international organization either as a member of a judicial or other authority, a state employee [“fonctionnaire”], an expert, translator or interpreter employed by any authority, an arbitrator or a member of the armed forces, for the benefit of such person or any third party, for the commission or omission of an act in relation to his official functions that is contrary to his duties or depends on the exercise of his discretionary powers, shall be liable to reclusion for a maximum term of five years’ or imprisonment.

3. Common provisions

Article 322octies

1. If the offender’s guilt and the consequences of his act are so insignificant that a penalty would be inappropriate, the competent authority shall waive prosecution, judicial proceedings or the imposition of a penalty.

2. Advantages authorized by department regulations and advantages of minor value in conformity with socially accepted practices shall not be considered undue advantages.

3. Individuals who carry out public functions are deemed to be public officials.

Criminal liability of legal entities

Article 100quater

1.A crime or misdemeanour committed within an enterprise in the pursuit of its commercial activities in conformity with its objects shall be imputed to the enterprise if it cannot be imputed to any specific individual because of the enterprise’s lack of organisation. In such case, the enterprise shall be liable to a maximum fine of five million francs.

2. In the case of an offence under Articles 260ter, 260quinquies, 305bis, 322ter, 322quinquies and 322septies, the enterprise shall be punished independently of the punishment of any individual if it must be criticized [“s’il doit lui être reproché”] for having failed to take all reasonable and necessary organisational measures to prevent such an offence.

3. The courts shall set the amount of the fine taking into consideration the seriousness of the offence, the lack of organisation, the damage caused and the economic capacity of the enterprise.

4. The following are deemed enterprises within the meaning of this article:

a) private law legal persons;

b) public law legal persons except for territorial corporations;

c) companies;

d) single-person enterprises.

Article 100quinquies

1. If criminal proceedings are initiated against the enterprise, the enterprise shall be represented by a single person who must be authorised to represent the enterprise in civil matters without restriction. If, after a reasonable lapse of time, the enterprise fails to appoint such a representative, the investigating authority or the courts shall appoint the person who, among those empowered to represent the enterprise in civil matters, will represent it in the criminal proceedings.

2. The person who represents the enterprise in the criminal proceedings shall have the rights and obligations of a defendant. The other representatives referred to in paragraph 1 are not obliged to give evidence.

3. If a criminal investigation is opened for the same offences or for related offences against the person who represents the enterprise in the criminal proceedings, the enterprise shall appoint another representative. If necessary, the investigating authority or the courts shall appoint another representative within the meaning of paragraph 1 or, failing that, a qualified third party.

Money laundering (Article 305bis)

1. Any person who commits an act such as to impede identification of the origin or the discovery or confiscation of assets which he knew or must have presumed to have originated in a criminal offence shall be liable to imprisonment or a fine.

2. In serious cases, the penalty shall be reclusion for a maximum term of five years or imprisonment. The custodial sentence shall be consecutive with a maximum fine of one million francs. A case is serious when the offender: a) acts as a member of criminal organisation; b) acts as a member of a gang formed to systematically launder money; c) generates substantial revenues or profit from money laundering.

3. Offenders are also liable when the principal offence has been committed in another country and is punishable in the State where it was committed.

Lack of vigilance with regard to financial transactions and right of disclosure (Article 305ter)

1. Any person who, in the course of his duties, accepts assets belonging to third parties, keeps them on deposit or assists in investing or transferring them without verifying the identity of the economic beneficiary with the diligence required under the circumstances shall be liable to imprisonment for a maximum of one year, detention or a fine.

2. The persons referred to in paragraph 1 are entitled to disclose to the Swiss prosecuting authorities and the federal authorities designated by law the evidence on which the suspicion that the assets were of criminal origin is based.

Fraud (Article 146, para. 1)

Any person who, with the intention of unlawfully enriching himself or a third party, deceitfully misleads a person by fallacious assertions or by concealing true facts or deceitfully confirms that person in his error and thereby induces the victim to decide to commit acts prejudicial to his pecuniary interests or those of a third party shall be liable to reclusion for a maximum term of five years or imprisonment.

False information about commercial enterprises (Article 152)

Any person who, as founder, owner, partner with unlimited liability, manager, member of the management body, board of directors or audit body or liquidator of a commercial company, cooperative or any other enterprise operated in commercial form provides or causes the provision, in disclosures to the public or in reports or proposals intended for all the shareholders of a commercial company or cooperative or all the participants of another enterprise operated in commercial form, of false or incomplete information of considerable importance such as to induce another person to decide to dispose of his assets in a way that prejudices his pecuniary interests shall be liable to imprisonment or a fine.

Forged documents (Article 251)

1. Any person who, with the intention of adversely affecting the pecuniary interests or rights of another person or of procuring an unlawful advantage for himself or a third party, forges or falsifies a document, misuses the real signature or personal mark of

another person to make a false document or falsely states a fact of legal import or causes such fact to be stated in a document, or

2. In inconsequential cases, the courts may order imprisonment or a fine.

Federal and cantonal jurisdiction (Article 340bis)

1. Offences under Articles 260ter, 260quinquies, 305bis, 305ter and 322ter to 322septies and crimes committed by a criminal organisation within the meaning of Article 260ter are also subject to federal jurisdiction: a) if the punishable acts have been predominantly

committed in another country; b) if the punishable acts have been committed in several cantons without any one of them being clearly predominant.

2. For offences under the second and eleventh titles, the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland may open an investigation:

a) if the conditions set forth at paragraph 1 are met; b) and if no cantonal prosecuting authority has initiated proceedings or the competent cantonal prosecuting authority asks the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland to take over proceedings.

3. The opening of the investigation referred to at paragraph 2 establishes federal jurisdiction.