Сравнение судебного процесса в России и Соединенном Королевстве Великобритании и Северной Ирландии

Ermachkov N.D.,
Student at the Russian State University of Justice

Scientific consultant Salmina E.A.,
Senior Teacher at the Foreign Languages Department,
Russian State University of Justice

Litigation in Russia vs the UK

Executive summary. Litigation is a legal procedure for judicial defense in the state, a review procedure and resolution of a case, which allows us to come to justice in relation to citizens. In different countries, judicial defense has many nuances that have been adopted since the times of ancient states. The article deals with the rules and organization of litigation in the Russian Federation and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Moreover, a comparison analysis of the participants in the trial is carried out, for example, the key terminology is highlighted as well as the role of the participants in the process, their main duties and powers are revealed. Furthermore, the article discusses issues related to, firstly, what statutory instruments are used in the countries in administration of justice and, secondly, the peculiarities of conducting audio and video recordings of court hearing are mentioned in Russia and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Based on the information found and analyzed, a conclusion is made about the accessibility and openness of justice.

Keywords: court, trial, participants in the proceedings, judge, court clerk, audio recording of the court hearing, broadcasting of the court hearing.

In the modern world legislation is actively changing as well as the field of the organization of the judicial process. It is important to study not only the laws of your country, but also to look at the experience of other countries. Therefore, this article will compare the litigation in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland with Russia, which is the relevance of the work. The main question of the article is: «Are the trail participants and the rules of recording and broadcasting of the court process in the UK the same as in Russia?».

To begin with, it is necessary to mention the legislation which regulates litigation. Such sources in the UK include Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022, Courts and Tribunals (Judiciary and Functions of Staff) Act 2018, Civil Procedure Act 1997, Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996. The main procedure acts in the Russian Federation are: Civil Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, Federal Constitutional Law «On the Judicial System of the Russian Federation», Federal Constitutional Law «On Courts of General Jurisdiction in the Russian Federation». It is a small part of all legislation but even this is enough to see the differences and find similarities.

Turning to the trial participants it is possible to divide them into several groups. The first group is usually named Court proper . Probably it is the most important group, which consists of a judge, jury, prosecutors and attorneys. These participants help to make a final decision.

Another group is Investigation and Expertise. These people may appear in court and testify or offer opinions due to their expertise or experience in a given area. This group includes coroners, medical examiners, handwriting analysis experts and other experts in various fields.

The last group is the Support Personnel – these people may assist the judge in conducting the trial. In Russia, there is such a public official as a secretary of the court session, whose responsibilities include maintaining records of a court, prepare all the collected materials on the case in paper form, notify the participants of the process and other formal work. There is a similar staff in the UK called a clerk to the court. One of his special duties is to administer oaths to witnesses and jurors.

Another employee in Russian courts is the judge assistant, who can do all the duties of the secretary of the court session but usually this person helps the judge to prepare draft decisions of the cases. They are available in every court. Judicial assistants in the UK also help the judge by researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court, also they announce the arrival and departure of the judge from the courtroom. Such clerk is provided only at the Court of Appeal and at the UK Supreme Court.

Government judicial experts and other experts from among persons with special knowledge carry out judicial examination in Russia. However, in the UK these persons are divided into different types. One of them is coroner. When someone’s death was unexpected by an industrial disease, or medical negligence, or an accident, a coroner will investigate the death. A coroner is a type of a judge who is appointed by the Crown. Their key role is to hear the evidence presented by witnesses and experts, to determine the causes or circumstances of someone’s death.

The next issue under the topic is Recording and Broadcasting in Court. It is important to note that in Russia, an audio and video recording is required in addition to the court record for all types of cases. The record of the court session is not a shorthand because it includes most important points of the trial. For this reason, any participant can request a copy of audio record to hear all details or to submit their remarks. Whereas court proceedings in the UK are recorded by mechanical or digital tools, there is generally no right, either for a party or for non-party, to listen to or receive a copy of such a recording. This is to minimize the risk of misuse of such recordings. In Russia, the authorities are more liberal about Broadcasting in Court. It is not prohibited to broadcast a court session if it is open, and if the court has agreed to it. The media can perform the broadcast on radio, television and on the Internet.

For a long time it has been a criminal offence to take photographs or make recordings in court, even sketch artists have to sketch from memory rather than while in court. In January 2020, new laws were passed, which allow cameras into the country’s Crown Courts to broadcast the sentencing remarks on high-profile criminal cases. Before that, it was only possible to express what was happening in the courtroom by drawing. The people who did this were called courtroom illustrators. To make their artworks, they take written notes during the case, before running outside to the press room to draw as fast as possible, usually with an hour or two deadline to make it to their client, the publisher or the broadcaster.

Overall, the litigation in the UK and in Russia has a lot in common; for example the same groups of trial participants, their role and duties in the court proceedings. Nevertheless, the participants of the process sometimes differ. For example, in the UK there are more specialists in the field of medical expertise, which may seem unusual to us. After having analyzed the differences in recording and broadcasting, it should be concluded that justice is more public in our country, which is certainly an advantage because it makes population legally experienced.

Литература

1. Civil Procedure Act 1997. URL: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1997/12/contents

2. Civil Procedure Code of the Russian Federation 14.11.2002 N 138-FZ (with amendments from 07.10.2022). URL: https://www.consultant.ru/document/cons_doc_LAW_39570/

3. Courts and Tribunals (Judiciary and Functions of Staff) Act 2018. URL: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2018/33/contents

4. Criminal Procedure and Investigations Act 1996. URL: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/25/contents

5. Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation 18.12.2001 N 174-FZ (with amendments from 07.10.2022). URL: http://www.consultant.ru/document/cons_doc_LAW_34481/

6. Federal Constitutional Law “On Courts of General Jurisdiction in the Russian Federation” 07.02.2011 N 1-FKZ (with amendments from 16.04.2022). URL: https://www.consultant.ru/document/cons_doc_LAW_110271/

7. Order of the Judicial Department at the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation “On approval of the Instructions on judicial record keeping in the District Court” 29.04.2003 N 36 (with amendments from 22.12.2021). URL: https://www.consultant.ru/document/cons_doc_LAW_42700/815d6a473b856e81b524e45345293e2ca959f8a0/

8. Brewer J. Drawn in the dock: the story of courtroom illustration. URL: https://www.itsnicethat.com/features/courtroom-illustration-060420 (03.12.2022)