Legal status of the law expert in civil judiciary

Abstract

The article analyzes the legal status of a legal expert in civil proceedings. The current procedural legislation regulating the issue of the legal personality of a law expert is described. Emphasis is on the lack of clear requirements in procedural law for this person, in particular, there are only the requirements to have a degree and - be recognized as a specialist in the field of law. The author substantiates the expediency of fixing the criteria that a judge must take into account in the case of admission of an expert to the case. The procedure for involving a legal expert has been studied. The article considers the issue of the place and significance of the legal expert's report in the process of proving as well as the content of the report. The author approves the provision of the norm, which fixes the legal expert's opinion on the application and interpretation of foreign law in accordance with their official or generally accepted interpretation, practice, and doctrine in the foreign country, as today international standards are the main guideline for the development of our state. It is also noteworthy that as an expert on this issue, it may be possible to involve a foreign expert who has a more accurate and complete knowledge of the applicable law. The paper proves the need to bring a legal expert to justice if he/ she violates the admission procedure and filing a report to the court, in particular criminal liability or, at least, the judge's decision. The article also emphasizes the right of the parties to the case to recuse the said party by analogy with other participants in the trial. There is special attention to the terminological differences in the definition of "a law expert". As a result, there was established the single name "a legal expert". The author considers the positions of scholars on the procedural status of the law expert in civil proceedings, which served to formulate the author's definition of a legal expert in civil proceedings. Based on the results of the study, there were formulated conclusions and proposals to the current domestic legislation.