The Principle of Legality in Corporate Criminal Liability for Tax Crimes: A Case Study of Court Decisions

The development of corporate crime is commensurate with the increasing role of corporations. In Indonesia, tax crimes are regulated under the Law on General Provisions and Tax Procedures (UU Ketentuan Umum dan Tata Cara Perpajakan - UU KUP). A fundamental problem arises because the UU KUP does not explicitly, clearly, and strictly regulate corporations as subjects of criminal law, only using the phrase "every person". This issue contradicts the principle of legality in criminal law. This study aims to determine the implementation of the theory of corporate criminal liability and its regulation in tax crimes based on the UU KUP. The research utilizes a normative juridical method, employing statutory, analytical, and case approaches. The results show that the implementation of corporate criminal liability is applied inconsistently and faces legality issues concerning both the legal subject and the sanctions. The case studies of court decisions indicate that Judges perform rechtsvinding by interpreting the phrase every person to include legal entities, even though the formulation of the UU KUP is acknowledged as unclear and not detailed. Furthermore, the cumulative sanctions in the UU KUP (imprisonment and fines) legally cannot be applied to corporations. Judges deviate from the cumulative system by only imposing fines. In conclusion, the implementation of corporate criminal liability in tax crimes is applied inconsistently. UU KUP is not explicitly, clearly, and strictly regulated the legal subject and specific sanctions for corporations, thus creating legality issues because it violates the principles of lex scripta, lex certa, and lex stricta.