In our previous post, we looked at the recent decision of the Mongolian Supreme Court finding a car accident resulting primarily in property damage will not be considered a criminal matter. Today, we will look a little deeper at the legal basis for the decision.
In the recent case, the Prosecutor charged the defendant under Article 27.10, Section 2, Clause 2.4 of the Criminal Code. However, the law at issue provides that, “Where a driver of a motor vehicle causes serious damage to human health due to a violation of the law on traffic safety”, it will be considered a crime (emphasis added).
Under the legal standard set by the law, a car accident resulting in “minor” injury or even significant property damage, would not meet the requirements to be treated criminally.
Therefore, the case in question should not be treated as a crime, but should property be dealt with a violation of traffic safety pursuant to the Law on Violations. Additionally, those suffering property damage may rely on civil law solutions in accordance with the Civil Code for appropriate compensation in accordance with the law.