The Russian Constitutional Court and the Communist Party case: Watershed or whitewash?

Abstract

Constitutional Courts stand at the interface between law and politics, as the newly formed Russian Constitutional Court exemplified during Russia's time of troubles between 1991 and 1993. One Constitutional Court case from that period had particular significance. The Russian court considered the constitutionality of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) and the Russian Communist Party (CP RSFSR). The seven month long hearing tested the court's stamina and resolve. Described before it began as ‘Russia's Nuremberg’, was the Communist Party case a turning point in Russia's relationship with her past, or was it a staged showpiece with no real impact? This paper explores the Russian Constitutional Court's longest case and its effects.