ACCEPTANCE OF AN OFFER, PROMISE OR OBTAINING AN UNLAWFUL BENEFIT BY A PERSON PROVIDING PUBLIC SERVICES (ART. 365-2 AND 368-4 OF THE CRIMINAL CODEХ)

The article analyzes the definitions of the concepts: “bribery of a person”, ‘public services' (Articles 365-2 and 368 of the CCU). The author identifies a set of leading features of the concepts under study, as well as the fundamental content of objective and subjective elements of the crime, which will be of significant importance for improving the theoretical and practical aspects of implementation of the anti-corruption provisions of the criminal procedure legislation of Ukraine updated in accordance with the European institutional requirements. The author identifies the gaps in the list of implementing basic provisions of the European anti-corruption conventions in the national criminal procedure legislation which are currently in practice, in terms of distinguishing specific forms of unlawful behavior of a special subject. Introduction. During the period of martial law (which is two and a half years), anti-corruption legislation in Ukraine was significantly updated, but updated data from the Corruption Perceptions Index as of the second quarter of 2024 showed that the state still failed to make a significant breakthrough in the fight against corruption (in the public sphere in particular) [1, р. 58–59]. Thus, criminal procedure legislation emphasizes the need to address the problem of effectively developing innovative methods to improve the practice of its implementation in terms of abuse of the special status of a person providing public services under the criminal procedure law of Ukraine, with the simultaneous procedure of bringing its provisions in line with the requirements of European anti-corruption standards. Purpose. Тo carry out a forensic characterization of bribery of a person providing public services as a theoretical and methodological basis for further improvement of the practice of applying the new anti-corruption provisions of the criminal legislation of Ukraine Materials and methods. The materials of the study are: updated anti-corruption legislation: The Criminal Code of Ukraine (CCU), the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, the Law of Ukraine “On Prevention of Corruption”, the Code of Ukraine “On the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine”; works of domestic and foreign authors conducting their scientific and practical research in the context of criminal law analysis of crimes in the field of official activities and professional activities related to the provision of public services [1–6; 9; 12; 17; 18]. The methods used are primarily based on a systematic approach which makes it possible to study the issues in a single legal framework. With a view to achieving the stated purpose of the article, the author distinguishes the dialectical approach to scientific knowledge and applies a comprehensive methodology of innovative general scientific modern trends which have found their application in legal science. Thus, the formal logical method was used to define the definition of “public services” as the essence of judicial control; the method of legal analysis was used to study the object and subject matter of bribery; the comparative legal method was used to study the provisions of European legislation