Stepanenko O. The expediency principle in criminal law doctrine and criminal legislation of Ukraine.

The thesis is the first in Ukraine special complex research of theoretical, methodological and practical aspects of expediency principle in criminal law doctrine and criminal legislation of Ukraine. Methodological principles of researching expediency principle in criminal law were formulated in the thesis; the concept of expediency principle of criminal law is suggested; the importance of expediency principle in criminal law doctrine of Ukraine was ascertained as well. The genesis of expediency principle in criminal law of Ukraine is explored and subsequent stages of its formation were defined. It is established that «expediency» has all indispensable characteristics to be a principle of criminal law (objectively-subjective character; regulatory; reflection of content of the General and Special parts of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (universality); obligatoriness on two levels of criminal law regulation: lawmaking and law-enforcing (general significance); systemacy that allows considering the expediency as one of the principles of criminal law. It is suggested to define principle in criminal law as a guiding idea that reflects content of law of criminal liability and stipulates exercising of lawmaking and law- enforcing activity to attain the goals and objectives of criminal law taking into account specific circumstances and tendency of development of criminal law. It is justified that principles of criminal law constitute a system that is characterized by equality of all elements. The place of the expediency principle among other principles of criminal law was determined and it is stated that the expediency principle is not isolated from other principles of criminal law but exists in unity and interrelation with them. Considering that the expediency principle in criminal law defines the effectiveness of criminal law regulation the content and importance of the expediency principle during enforcement of criminal law (qualification of criminal offences, discharge from criminal liability and imposition of punishment) as well as in the sphere of criminal lawmaking is defined. On the basis of thorough research of the criminal law, its doctrine and enforcement practice theoretically justified proposals and changes to the Criminal Code of Ukraine in the sphere of enforcement of the expediency principle in criminal law are formulated.