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Criminal liability for the disclosure of adoption secrecy: doctrinal issues and directions for reform

Slovo of the National School of Judges of Ukraine. №1(54) 2026. P.138-148

ISSN: 2707-6849     

UDC343.541:347.63:347.157

DOI https://doi.org/10.37566/2707-6849-2026-1(54)-13

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Roman CHAIKA,

Associate Professor of the Department of Law, Vyacheslav Lypynskyi Volyn Institute, Private Joint-Stock Company “Higher Education Institution «Interregional Academy of Personnel Management», Candidate of Law Sciences

ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9366-832X

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Criminal liability for the disclosure of adoption secrecy: doctrinal issues and directions for reform

 

Abstract

The article analyzes the criminal-law protection of adoption secrecy in Ukraine, focusing on the content, evolution, and legal construction of Article 168 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, as well as its correlation with the guarantees of private and family life established in the Family Code of Ukraine (Arts. 226–228) and the Civil Code of Ukraine (Art. 301). The study clarifies the legal nature of the offence, its object and subject matter, the elements of actus reus and mens rea, as well as the differentiation of liability depending on whether the offender is a general or a special subject. Particular attention is paid to the evaluative legal category of «grave consequences» and the issues of its interpretation in law enforcement practice.

The article also examines the doctrinal debate on the correlation between Articles 168 and 182 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, assessing approaches that treat them as general and special norms or allow cumulative qualification where a broader range of confidential information is disclosed. It is argued that inconsistencies in penalization between these provisions create risks for uniform law enforcement and question the expediency of maintaining a special criminal-law prohibition.

The study argues that the Ukrainian model of full adoption secrecy should be aligned with international standards on children’s rights and respect for private life, particularly the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights on the right to know one’s origin. It proposes clarifying the limits of criminalization and improving the legislative design of Article 168 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, including more humane sanctions and the use of probation supervision, to eliminate inconsistencies, balance the interests of the child and adoptive parents, and enhance the predictability of legal qualification.

Keywords: adoption secrecy, disclosure, inviolability of private life, conflict of norms, concurrence of offences, children’s rights, ECHR case-law, probation supervision.

References

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SuggestedCitation: Chaіka, R. (2026) Criminal liability for the disclosure of adoption secrecy: doctrinal issues and directions for reform. Slovo National School of Judges of Ukraine, 1 (54), 138–148. https://doi.org/10.37566/2707-6849-2026-1(54)-13

 

Date of first submission of the article to the publication: 18.03.2026

Date of acceptance of the article for publication after review: 13.04.2026

Date of publication (publication): 22.04.2026