Disclosure of closed court information now a criminal offense in Uzbekistan

Criminal liability has been introduced in Uzbekistan for the disclosure of information from closed court sessions. This is stated in the law “On Amendments and Addenda to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Uzbekistan,” adopted on September 26.

According to the amendments, a person who is obliged not to disclose information and details of a closed court session without the court’s permission will now bear criminal responsibility if they do so.

The amendments also stipulate that if there are grounds for hearing a case in a closed session, the court must issue a ruling to conduct the hearing behind closed doors.

Upon issuing such a ruling, all persons participating in the closed court session must be formally warned against disclosing any information from the proceedings without the court’s permission, and a written acknowledgment of this warning must be obtained from them.

This acknowledgment will also include a notice of liability for violating the obligation in accordance with Article 239 of the Criminal Code, which concerns the disclosure of information from an investigation or preliminary inquiry.

The law will come into force on the date of its official publication.