The inapplicability of usury in Ecuador: evidentiary obstacles and proposals for regulatory effectiveness
Keywords:
Usury; inapplicability; evidence; governing verb; regulatory effectiveness; criminal policyAbstract
The crime of usury in Ecuador, typified in Article 309 of the Comprehensive Organic Penal Code, faces serious difficulties for its effective application due to the restrictive interpretation of the governing verb "stipulate," which requires a formal manifestation of will to prove the usurious interest agreement. This research, with a mixed approach and explanatory sequential design, aims to analyze the structural causes that determine the practical inapplicability of the crime of usury in Ecuador, with special emphasis on the evidentiary obstacles arising from the restrictive interpretation of the governing verb stipulate. The methodology combined the analysis of 50 judicial files processed in Pichincha and Guayas between 2019 and 2024, and 15 semi-structured interviews with prosecutors, judges, and public defenders. The results show that 72% of the cases lack a written document and that the lack of proof of the stipulation is the reason for dismissal in 68% of the files. It is concluded that the norm functions as a symbolic instrument rather than an effective tool for social control, and therefore reforms are proposed to make evidentiary means more flexible, objectively define usurious interest, strengthen the training of operators, and connect criminal law with financial supervision mechanisms.
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