In spite of the excessive over-criminalization and penal populism in modern criminal law, the author expresses his view of the need to set narrower limits on criminal law and to prescribe the more moderate punishments that could be used more efficiently (criminal minimalism). Moreover, the present expansion of criminal law leads to its greater inefficiency and ineffectiveness; it also has other negative consequences for a society, that is why the more moderate approach of the legislator in setting the boundaries of criminal law is desirable and justified. While it is not realistic to expect that legislators in most countries will take a standstill in terms of prescribing new criminal offenses and tightening prescribed punishments, the task of the doctrine of criminal law and related sciences is at least to point to the negative consequences and dangers inherent in continuing such a trend. The presented paper analyzes main trends in development of Serbian criminal legislation from a minimalist perspective and reveals their interconnection with global trends. Special attention is paid to two milestones in penal law reform in Serbia: introduction of laws concerning corporate criminal liability and confiscation of proceeds from crime (2008) and amendments to the Penal Code (2009).
legitimacy, combating crime, criminal minimalism, criminal law expansionism, Serbian criminal law
