New Legal Reality: Exterritoriality of Criminal Law as Part of the Fight Against Doping, or the Legal Phenomenon of the «Rodchenkov Act»

Abstract

The development of the world anti-doping culture is currently accompanied by numerous problems. This article presents an analysis of the principle of extraterritoriality of criminal law in connection with the «Rodchenkov Act». Information wars, the application of alternative standards of proving, the use of collective liability mechanisms towards «clean» athletes and, finally, the «Rodchenkov Act» - all of these initiated destabilizing changes in high-performance sport. The goal of current research is to determine the specific features of the practice of extending criminal norms beyond the national jurisdiction as part of fighting against doping. The authors analyze the foreign experience of using the exterritoriality of the USA from the standpoint of the effects doctrine. It is stated that, as a legal phenomenon, the USA-promoted exterritoriality contradicts the UNO Charter, and undermines the global anti-doping rules of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) by actually duplicating the law within just the limits of its own jurisdiction. It appears that the extraterritorial character of law is a legal construction that is exceptional and impossible in the normal course of events whose application (the «Rodchenkov Act») could result in the loss of the spirit of «clean sport». It is determined that the uniformity of rules for all athletes, organizations and other persons in high-performance sport is the basis of WADAs anti-doping program. The practice of anti-doping investigations is examined. The authors stress the necessity of keeping the balance between the interests of the sides in the procedures of doping control while observing the principle of fair play. The authors have summarized the historical experience and presented the practice of extending criminal norms beyond the borders of national jurisdiction as part of fighting against doping.