The concept of “composition of a civil offense” in legal science is defined as “a description of the signs of illegal action”. At the same time, a certain scheme has been developed in accordance with which this description is carried out. Thus, the corpus delicti is a complex of elements. They include: the objective side, the object, the subjective side, the subject. In turn, these components are divided into mandatory - included in each structure of the offense, and optional - inherent only to some systems.
The objective side characterizes the action, the method of its commission (using tools, special means, a group, repeatedly, systematically). The objective signs that characterize the offense include circumstances, the time of the act (during an epidemic, natural disaster, and others).
In some cases, the offense may include only the fact of the commission, which will be enough to bring the violator to justice. Such acts, for example, include speeding, possession of weapons without permission, non-compliance with labor protection rules and others. If the committed action entails consequences, the liability increases or a more stringent liability arises.
The offense may include determining all the consequences of the act. In accordance with this, the establishment of a causal relationship between the action itself and the consequences that ensued after it is also provided.
The subject of the offense is the person who committed the unlawful act.
In the process of implementing punitive, punitive responsibility of the offender, circumstances that affect the degree of severity of the punishment are taken into account. In particular, it can be extenuating (pregnancy, minor, etc.) or aggravating (intoxication, criminal record, foreclosed penalties and other) circumstances.
Some offenses include the presence of a special subject: an official, a medical professional, a military serviceman, or a transport employee. This component also affects the severity of the punishment imposed.
In a number of offenses, entities are entities. An enterprise or institution may be held liable for the commission of various violations. For example, if the work performed does not comply with the established rules and regulations, if the rules for environmental protection are not followed, and so on. When committing property offenses, legal and physical persons are liable. The subjects may include media, television, radio broadcasting and other media. In this case, the illegal act is, as a rule, the dissemination of false information.
Regarding those offenses in which the action is qualified without interconnection with the consequences, the general principle is used. It provides that ignorance of officially published law does not exempt from liability in case of non-compliance.
In the presence of complex compositions, in which both the act and its consequences are considered, an important element is the differentiation of types of guilt. So, they distinguish negligence and intent. An act is considered intentional if the offender foresaw negative (dangerous or harmful) consequences and wanted them to come (direct intent) or consciously allowed them to occur.
The act is considered to be committed by negligence in the event that the offender, foreseeing the negative consequences, frivolously counted on their prevention or did not foresee their occurrence, although he had to and could do it.