Judgment of the Court (Eighth Chamber) of 22 January 2026.#Criminal proceedings against AK Dlhopolec s.r.o. and Others.#Request for a preliminary ruling from the Najvyšší súd Slovenskej republiky.#Reference for a preliminary ruling – Public procurement procedures – Directive 2014/23 – Award of concession contracts – Directive 2014/24 – Grounds for exclusion – National legislation establishing a register of public sector partners – Requirement of impartiality on the part of the person authorised to enter the public sector partner in that register – Imposition of a fine for non-compliance with that requirement – Automatic exclusion from participation in public procurement procedures in the event of non-payment of that fine – Article 49 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union – Criminal nature of the penalty – Predictability and proportionality of that penalty – Principle of legal certainty.#Case C-590/24.