Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure
Substantive criminal law
Understand the crime definition (act or omission, unlawfulness, guilt, punishability), the categories of crimes by gravity, and the elements of the offence (object, objective side, subject, subjective side). Know forms of guilt (intent, negligence), stages of criminal conduct (preparation, attempt, completed crime), complicity (perpetrator, organizer, instigator, aider), and circumstances excluding criminality (self-defense, necessity, detention of offender, risk).
Penalties
Know the system of penalties, the rules of sentencing, mitigating and aggravating circumstances, cumulative sentences, and release from liability or punishment (amnesty, pardon, limitation, reconciliation). Traps: confusing attempt with preparation (attempt begins the execution); confusing complicity with joint perpetration; assuming voluntary refusal applies after the crime is completed.
Procedure
Criminal procedure covers the participants, the stages (inquiry, preliminary investigation, trial, appeal, cassation, supervisory review), measures of procedural coercion (detention, bail, surety), rights of the suspect and accused, and the role of the defense counsel from the moment of actual detention. Traps: mixing investigative actions with procedural decisions; confusing time limits for detention with time limits for investigation.
Rule of thumb
For complicity questions, ask whether the person contributed to the objective side before or during the crime; after the fact, it is concealment, not complicity.
Worked example
A person agrees to buy stolen goods after the theft. That is not complicity in theft, but a separate offence of acquiring property known to be obtained by crime.