People Judge Research Articles

Народное участие в правосудии: на примере шеффенского суда и суда присяжных

Lay participation is an indicator of a democratic society. This article analyzes some traditional forms of lay participation in criminal proceedings, in particular, the Schöffen courts in Germany and jury trials in the UK, e.g., the main competencies of people's judges, staffing rules, etc. The author highlighted some general and special disadvantages, as well as those associated with the application of these forms in Russian criminal trials. The diachronic analysis of courts with people's assessors and jury courts revealed a number of differences and similarities. In Russia, Schöffen courts took place during the reign of Catherine the Great, as well as in the Soviet period; jurors participated in criminal trials in the second half of the XIX century and still do. The article also describes the current domestic legislation on lay participation in judicial proceedings.

The local kazakh elite in the second half of the ХІХ century and the beginning of the XX century and its transformation (on the basis of the materials of Aktobe region)

The article examines the socio-political activity of the Kazakh regional elite of the second half of the XIX - early XX century and its transformation. As a result of the administrative and political reforms of the 1860s-1890s, a new administrative division was introduced on the territory of the Kazakhs of the Orenburg department, according to which officials such as the volost administrator and village elders were introduced based on local self-government. The article 48 analyzes the functional responsibilities of the volost administrator and village elders introduced in the «Regulations». Based on the provisions of the 60-90s of the nineteenth century, the authors also consider the introduction of the services of the people's court, the volost mullah, studying the impact of these changes on social relations in Kazakh society, the activities and status of biys and religious figures participating in it. Also, the article separately analyzes the transformation of the institution of the bai at this stage. The composition of the Kazakh regional elite of the second half of the 19th century, in addition to volost and aul elders, included biys who served as people's judges, volost mullahs, bais, aksakals and other influential people. These were individuals with authority and influence in society. Over time, volost governors and aul elders became an integral part of the social structure of Kazakh society. During the period we are considering, the activities of representatives of this regional elite in society have undergone significant changes. Our article is devoted to the study of these transformational processes. At the end of the work, the following preliminary conclusions were drawn regarding the transformation of the Kazakh regional elite: 1. The Kazakh regional elite formed the basis of Kazakh society in the second half of the 19th - early 20th centuries. Influential volosts, biys, religious figures, bais, aksakals continued to interact and solve the pressing problems of the people; 2. Volost governors, approved on the basis of the new reform, were eventually integrated into Kazakh society and became the main officials in public and political life; 3. Representatives of the regional Kazakh elite during this period underwent a transformation in social status and political influence. The Russian government strive to limit the authority and activities of the Kazakh biys, bais, clergy, and other influential people by introducing elected positions and various restrictions. With the establishment of Soviet power, repressive measures began against representatives of the Kazakh people and the elite, damage was done to their authority and status in society.

Organization of Justice in the Ostyak-Vogul National District in the 1930s

Introduction. The publication reveals the history of the organization of the Soviet justice authorities in the national regions of Western Siberia in the 1930s. The example of the activities of judicial officials shows the state policy on organizing new courts in an isolated region of Russia. Purpose. The purpose of the article is to identify the features of the organization of bodies of Soviet justice in remote areas of the north of Western Siberia. Methodology. The main methods used in the study include the historical approach, the system-structural method and the comparative analysis method. Results. Since 1931 in the northern regions of the Ural and then Omsk regions, district justice bodies have been formed. District justice bodies subordinated to themselves the people's judges, notaries and bailiffs. They performed the role of the main regional justice body in conditions of remoteness from regional courts. They faced the task of improving the personnel of law enforcement agencies in the region. They could not complete this task for objective reasons. Most justice workers were young Communists and Komsomol members who advanced in the 1920s. They tried to compensate for the low level of competence through vigorous activity. However, the purges and repressions did not allow them to stay in their workplaces for a long time. The nominees often irritated the local authorities because of their attempts to follow the law. Repressions, low pay, and harsh environmental conditions pushed judicial officers out of the system and from the region. Conclusion. The history of organizational “perturbations” in the North of Western Siberia allows us to identify general trends in the personnel policy of the Soviet state in remote regions of Russia in the 20th century.

Становление системы повышения квалификации и профессиональной переподготовки судей в СССР (1917–1941 годы)

On the basis of the analysis of a number of normative legal acts and special literature the article considers the process of formation in USSR of the state system of training and retraining of personnel for judicial system in the period from 1917 to 1941. Particular attention is drawn to the interrelation between the establishment in the USSR of the system of positive law institutions and the need to create adequate and diverse forms of training for the judiciary, capable of performing the functions of the judiciary. The article also notes the influence of the class approach in the preparation and evaluation of the activities of people's judges, which was a characteristic and objective feature in the formation and development of the judicial system of our country in the Soviet period.

Down by Law: Irony, Seriousness, and Reason+

Blindfolded Justice never cracks a smile. Laws don't joke around. In Bertolt Brecht's The Caucasian Chalk Circle, People's Judge Azdak instructs us that “the law must always be dispensed with complete seriousness.” “Because it's such a serious matter,” Solomon would have said. “Because it's so stupid,” Azdak explains, “and gone before you know it.”

Fairness, Justice, and Legitimacy: Experiences of People's Judges in South Russia

Which criteria do Russians use to evaluate the fairness of their judges, and how does perceived fairness of actual trials influence general beliefs about Russian courts? Lay assessors at courts in South Russia were asked about their experience serving on mixed courts. The justice of the verdicts rendered and the fairness of judges partly explain the respondents’ view of national courts. According to the results, the respondents are also using similar criteria for fairness as Americans or Germans. The social and psychological group effects in a Russian court of lay assessors exhibit a striking similarity to other Western tribunals.

Raise the Qualifications of Justice Workers

The Ukrainian SSR Ministry of Justice devotes unwavering attention to retraining the personnel of courts and justice organs and institutions. Republic advanced training courses for justice workers have been established in Kiev, and adjunct courses have been organized in Khar'kov. The courses are attended by people's judges, attorneys, notaries, marshals of the court, office managers, court secretaries, legal advisers, and civil registration office workers.

An Important form of Improvement of the Professional Skills of Justice Personnel

In accordance with the joint decree of the CPSU Central Committee and the USSR Council of Ministers of July 30, 1970, "On Measures to Improve the Work of Judicial and Procuracy Organs," and Decree No. 640 of November 12, 1970, of the RSFSR Council of Ministers, permanent republic-wide courses for improving the qualifications of justice personnel in the RSFSR have been organized in that federation. Here members of supreme courts of autonomous republics, members of territorial, regional, city, and national area courts, presiding judges of district (or city) people's courts, people's judges, consultants of departments of justice and of courts, notaries, and defense attorneys will undergo retraining. Branches of the republic-wide courses for bailiffs, office heads, secretaries of courts and hearings, clerks, and inspectors are being established in affiliation with the ministries of justice of autonomous republics and the justice departments of the executive committees of territorial and regional Soviets of working people's deputies.

Unity and Diversity in Socialist Law

Unity of law was a major casualty of the Russian Revolution. Lenin not only permitted the various ethnic groups which had formed the Russian Empire to secede and create their own legislation; he also made no provision for an appellate tribunal within the new Russian Republic to unify the practice of in the various provinces. This was the more remarkable because these were authorized to go their own way without regard to centralized guidance. The first decree on the courts1 instructed newly created courts to decide the cases brought before them on the basis of Tsarist legislation, but only to the extent that this had not been specifically revoked and was not contrary to the revolutionary conscience and revolutionary consciousness of the judge. Common concepts of socialist morality rather than unified legislation became the rock on which the judges were to build. The plan now looks Utopian, but it appeared less so to the communists who were creating the new Russia. To many of them Marxist doctrine was prophetic. It anticipated the ultimate withering away of the state, with its instruments, the and the law, as soon as a reorganized economy had produced abundance and a re-educated citizenry had come to understand its social duty. Though no one was prepared to predict, and Lenin even suggested that the process would be rather lengthy, the achievement of communism was expected to come sooner rather than later. A common culture with a common morality was not so far off as to lack reality.2 The Commissar of Justice explained the possibilities in a handbook published during the summer of I9I8.3 In his words, there appears a new legal consciousness, that is, an internal conviction, first of a few individuals, and later of a group, and then of a whole class, and finally of all mankind. He demanded that this revolutionary legal consciousness become a standard of the people's judges. He admitted that the process of freeing the judges to decide as their concept of morality required would result in some instability and vacillation of law, but he thought this desirable. Eventually, the highest organs of government could discern a desirable approach and fix it in new laws, but meanwhile improvisation was to be on an individual basis. Even such guide lines as were provided by the old Tsarist legisla-