 | You can helpexpand this article with text translated fromthe corresponding article in Russian. (April 2024)Click [show] for important translation instructions.
|
%253DDSC_0260.JPG)
In thejudiciary of Russia an office of themagistrate orjustice of the peace (мировой судья), is a judge that handles minor civil and criminal cases. Magistrates handle criminal cases where imprisonment is for less than three years for cases such as slander, petty hooliganism, public drunkenness, serious traffic violations of a non-criminal nature, minor civil cases such as simple divorces, some property cases, disputes over land, some labor cases, as well as some federal administrative law cases.[1]
In theRussian Empire the concept ofmagistrates' courts (Russian:мировой суд) existed (there is none in modern Russia).
 | This sectionneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.(April 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The concept of magistrates' courts was introduced inRussian Empire in 1864 as part of thejudicial reform of Alexander II.[1] It was based on the Britishjustice of the peace. It was replaced by other offices after theRussian Revolution but reintroduced formally inRussia by the 1996 Constitutional Law on the Judicial System.[1]
The regulations in the Russian Empire provided for establishment of local courts with justices of the peace to deal with minor offences, who could not impose sentence more than one year of imprisonment. Each justice of the peace was supposed to serve in a circuit oneuyezd comprising several circuits. They were elected for three years byzemstvos. However, in many areas, there was not enough candidates who could meet the requirements for election, and in other areas, local authorities hindered the process of election. In several western regions, justices of the peace were eventually appointed by the Minister of Justice. In 1889, the whole institution was abolished everywhere except forMoscow andSt. Petersburg. The powers of justices of the peace were vested in local executive authorities. They were restored in 1912, but the monarchy was already about to collapse.
They judged minor criminal and civil cases. They were individually elected from the ranks of local self-government bodies, zemstvos in the rural areas and municipaldumas in the towns.
Candidates for this office had to meet certain conditions: completed secondary school education and own real estate of 15 000 rubles in rural districts, 6000 rubles in the capitals, and 3000 rubles in other towns. Most of justices were minor landowners.[a] Zemstvos could sometimes elect justices of the peace without the property qualification only with a unanimous vote. Justices of the peace were elected for three years, and were confirmed in office byGoverning Senate. They could not be dismissed during their term in office except by indictment under process of law.
There were two classes: acting justices and honorary justices. The acting justice normally sat alone to hear cases, but, at the request of both parties, he might call in an honorary justice as an assessor or a substitute. In all civil cases involving less than 30 rubles and in criminal cases punishable by no more than three days' arrest, his judgment was final. In other cases appeal can be made to the "assize of the peace" (mirovoy syezd), three or more justices of the peace meeting monthly (like the English quarter sessions), which acted as a court of appeal and a high court. From there, another appeal could be made on points of law or disputed procedure to theGoverning Senate, which could send the case back for a retrial by an assize of the peace in another district.
Justices of the peace constitute the lowest level of thejudiciary of Russia. The powers and procedures for justices of the peace are regulated by the 1996 constitutional law "On the Judicial System of the Russian Federation", which is the basis of the federal law "On Justices of the Peace in the Russian Federation". The latter was adopted on November 11, 1998, and its implementation was basically completed by July 2002 (with the exception of theChechen Republic, where it was delayed until 2004 due to theSecond Chechen War).
The magistrates are the only judges of theregional level within thejudiciary of Russia. All other courts, including thedistrict courts, are federal, as they are financed from the federal budget and their judges are appointed by thepresident of Russia. The magistrates are financed from the regional budgets and are usually appointed by regional legislatures or elected by the population of a judicial district.[citation needed]
"Мировые судьи" .Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian). 1906.