The System of the Courts of General Jurisdiction
Other Courts of a limited and local nature are known as inferior courts. Other Federal Courts, which constitute the system of the courts of general jurisdiction, are:
• Courts of general jurisdiction of the subjects of the Russian Federation (the Supreme Courts of the Republics of the Russian Federation the Area, Oblasts, Cities of federal importance (Moscow and St. Petersburg), Autonomy Oblast and Autonomies Circuits Courts)
• The Municipal Courts
• The Specialized Military Courts.
The System of the Arbitrazh Courts
Other Federal Courts, besides the High Arbitrazh Court, which constitute the system of the Arbitrazh courts, are:
• The Federal Arbitrazh Circuit Courts
• The Arbitrazh courts of the subjects of the Russian Federation.
The Court System of the Subjects of the Russian Federation
The court system of the subjects of the Russian Federation like the federal court system consists of:
• Constitutional courts of the subjects of the Russian Federation
• Courts of general jurisdiction of the subjects of the Russian Federation
• Arbitrazh courts of the subjects of the Russian Federation.
Vocabulary
administerv 1управлять; 2применять (нормы права); отправлять (правосудие);
administer justicesyn to administer law отправлять правосудие
arbitrationn русск. аrbitrazhарбитраж; третейский суд; арбитражное
разбирательство
authorityn 1власть; полномочие; 2орган власти; judicial authorityсудебная
власть
capacityn 1правоспосoбность; 2компетенция
consentv давать согласие; соглашаться
consistentadj согласованный; is consistent withне противоречит
contractuallyadv основанный на договоре
court proceeding(s)n судопроизводство; судебное разбирательство
entityn субъект права; самостоятельное образование; legal entity 1субъект
права; 2юридическое лицо;synjuridical entity
establishment of courts n создание/учреждение судов
hierarchy of courtsn иерархия судов
implementv выполнять, осуществлять
inferior courtn нижестоящий суд
lawn 1закон; 2право
abolish the lawотменить закон
apply the law применить закон
contract lawдоговорное право
family law семейное право
property lawправо собственности; вещное право
tort law деликтное право
legal actionn судебный иск
legal relationsn правоотношения
on behalf ofот имени (кого-либо)
original jurisdictionn юрисдикция суда первой инстанции
reassessmentn пересмотр
sentencen приговор
substancen суть; существо; to examine a case in substanceрассматривать дело по существу
Reading tasks
Answer these questions.
1 What is the court?
2 What are two main reasons for variety of courts?
3 How do you understand the statement “the decisions of a higher court are binding upon lower courts”?
4 How is judicial authority implemented in Russia?
5 Which judicial branch deals with economic proceedings?
6 What cases do civil courts of general jurisdiction deal with?
7 What is the status of the Federal Constitutional Law On the Judicial System of the RF?
8 What elements does the court system of the Russian Federation consist of?
9 What is the function of a court of first instance?
10 What is the function of a court of second instance?
11 Where may parties to international agreements resolve their disputes?
12 What elements do the Superior Courts consist of?
13 What is the structure of the courts of general jurisdiction?
14 What are the elements of the system of the Arbitrazh courts?
15 What elements does the court system of the subjects of the RF consists of?
Comprehension check.
ASkim the text. Are these statements true (T) or false (F)?
1There are courts of first instance and second instance.
2 A court of first instance examines appeals and protests against sentences and decisions of other courts.
3Any court may sit as a court of first instance.
4Higher courts hear and determine cases of major importance.
5The decisions of a higher court are not binding upon lower courts.
6 The arbitration courts don’t consider economic disputes with foreign parties participation.
B Finish the following sentences using the facts from the text.
1 The court is a state body that…
2 The decisions of a higher court are…
3 Judicial authority in Russia is implemented through…
4 The civil courts of general jurisdiction deal with…
5 A court of original jurisdiction is one which…
6 Any court may sit as a …
7 Economic disputes between legal entities are resolved in…
Vocabulary tasks
AMatch the following English words and expressions with their Russian equivalents.
| legal system | a | судебный иск | |
| application of law | b | решить спор | |
| variety of courts | c | сторона по делу | |
| make decisions | d | ограничение | |
| legal action | e | разнообразие судов | |
| party | f | применение права/ закона | |
| restriction | g | правовая система | |
| resolve a dispute | h | принимать решения |
BMatch the legal terms with their definitions.
| appeal | a | an out-of-court settlement of a dispute | |
| jurisdiction | b | discussion about a subject where there is disagreement | |
| court | c | governmental power or jurisdiction | |
| arbitration | d | the right to use an official power to make legal decisions | |
| authority | e | one of the people or groups of people involved in a legal agreement or argument | |
| party | f | a formal request to a court for a decision to be changed | |
| dispute | g | a governmental body intended to apply the law to controversies brought before it and to administer justice |
Text B
Jurisdiction of Courts
Jurisdiction means the power of a court to hear and determine a case. There are three forms of jurisdiction:
• If a court can be consulted by another court on points of law it is said to have consultative jurisdiction.
• A court has original jurisdiction if a case can be completely heard before it.
• If a court hears appeals from a lower court it is said to have appellate jurisdiction.
The judicial system consists of several levels, each level having numerous courts. Which court shall consider a particular case?
After cases are distributed between basic levels of judicial system (i.e. between courts of general jurisdiction and Arbitrazh courts), they shall be distributed between numerous courts of one judicial level. The basic principle in determining court's jurisdiction in this case is the geographic position of the court.
The Constitutional Court
The Constitutional Court ensures that the laws and other normative acts passed or being considered by the supreme and local legislative branches are constitutional.
The jurisdiction of the Constitutional Court is the observance over compliance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation of federal laws, decrees of the President of the Russian Federation, acts of the Federation Council, of the State Duma, of the Russian Federation Government, Constitutions of Republics of the Russian Federation and a number of other normative legal acts. The Constitutional Court may rule on the legal matters when that is stipulated by the Federal Constitutional Law.
Among persons that may file their claims to the Constitutional Court are the President of the Russian Federation, the State Duma, one-fifth of the members of the Federation Council or deputies of the State Duma, the Government of the Russian Federation, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation and the High Arbitrazh Court of the Russian Federation, the bodies of legislative and executive power of the subjects of the Russian Federation, individuals, groups of individuals and legal entities. The named persons may file their claims to the Constitutional Court in case their constitutional rights and freedoms were infringed by a law enforced or to be enforced in a particular legal case.
While filing a personal or joint complaint to the Constitutional Court one should keep in mind the following peculiarities of jurisdiction of this court:
• First, it must be law and not other legal acts that infringes or has infringed rights and freedoms of the plaintiff. Here the law is understood as federal constitutional laws, federal laws, constitutions and statutes of the subjects of the Russian Federation. Normative legal acts of Ministries are appealed against in courts of general jurisdiction.
• Second, it must be constitutional and not other rights and freedoms that are infringed by the law.
• Third, the law appealed against has enforced or is to be enforced in a particular legal case already considered or being considered by a court or other juridical body.