Overcoming Accusatorial Bias of Russian Justice

Abstract

The paper is devoted to ways to overcome accusatorial bias in Russian courts. The main ways are the provision of courts with worthy personnel and the creation of an independent first instance court, which does not exist now. The author substantiates the thesis that the absence of an independent court of first instance is the main prerequisite for the existence of an accusatorial bias. The factors that undermine the independence of the first instance court are the right of the appellate courts to remand the case for a new trial when the sentence is overturned, and the existing system for assessing the quality of the administration of justice. The Russian judiciary lives in a situation where a judge’s moral certainty does not match the opinion of a higher authority, which causes trouble for him and negatively affects his career. He is forced to adapt to someone else’s opinion. To overcome the accusatorial bias, a new culture of judicial decision-making must be formed. When making a decision, the judge must be independent not only from the executive or legislative power, but also from higher judicial instances. It is proposed to legislatively limit the right of appellate courts to return cases for a new trial and provide for the right of appellate courts to issue a guilty verdict instead of an acquittal.