CRIMINAL OFFENSE OF DISCLOSURE OF SECRETS
CRIMINAL OFFENSE OF DISCLOSURE OF SECRETS

Summary/Abstract: In the current legislation, criminal offenses involving the disclosure of secrets are prescribed by both the Criminal Code of the Republic of Serbia (CC) and the Law on Data Secrecy (LDS). This matter is almost entirely covered by the Draft Law on Amendments to the Criminal Code, which has been under public discussion in the professional public of the Republic of Serbia since November 2024. The draft proposes the deletion of the current criminal offenses under Article 316 CC (“Disclosure of a State Secret”), Article 369 CC (“Disclosure of an Official Secret”), Article 415 CC (“Disclosure of a Military Secret”), as well as the criminal offense under Article 98 of the Law on Data Secrecy. Instead, a single criminal offense titled “Disclosure of Classified Data” is proposed in the new Article 316 CC. Amendments are also envisaged to the criminal offense under Article 315 CC (“Espionage”). The need for such changes stems from the need to further improve the Republic of Serbia’s criminal justice system and align it with contemporary societal needs, as well as obligations arising from the EU accession process. Accordingly, it is necessary to examine the aforementioned criminal offenses involving the disclosure of secrets in light of the upcoming amendments (de Lege ferenda) and compare them with the current legal framework (de ledge late).

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