Prospects of decriminalization of crimes in the field of economic activity

The article is devoted to the analysis of social and legal grounds of decriminalization of crimes in the sphere of economic activity, which do not represent an increased social danger. It examines the features of objective and subjective manifestations of social danger of a number of economic crimes, as well as the specifics of their harm to the interests of the individual, society and the state protected by criminal law, highlights the problematic aspects of the practice of applying the relevant criminal law norms, reveals its negative sides due to the broad possibilities for discretion on the part of the law enforcement officer in the qualification of acts, and as a consequence - the use of gaps made by the developers of the criminal code, when initiating criminal cases and making procedural decisions on them. In the course of the study, the author comes to the conclusion that it is the legislative shortcomings that are the main factor of abuse by law enforcement officials in the implementation of unjustified criminal prosecution against entrepreneurs and suggests ways to improve criminal legislation in this area in the form of decriminalization of a number of economic crimes.