Article title Written Cassation Proceedings in the Criminal Process of Ukraine
Authors
Name of magazine Legal journal «Law of Ukraine» (Ukrainian version)
Issue 8/2018
Сторінки [139-149]
DOI 10.33498/louu-2018-08-139
Annotation

Reasonable optimization (scaling down) of procedures is one of the crucial tasks of today’s law of criminal procedure, since this will ensure efficient resolution of a range of tasks of criminal proceedings, in particular, promptness and accessibility of justice, and its efficiency. One of the forms of criminal procedure optimization is a written form of cassation proceedings. Despite the obvious advantages which this form of the court procedure offers in terms of cassation proceedings as compared with traditional pleadings, the regulatory model underlying the Code of Criminal Procedure of Ukraine (hereinafter – CCrP of Ukraine) unduly narrows the scope of its application, linking it exclusively to the will of the parties. However, such an approach, contrarily to procedural economy, entails the launch of the court procedure with all of its attributes, and this is not always necessary and therefore entails red tape and useless expense of time. The purpose of the article is to find out what the grounds are for using the written form of cassation proceedings in the criminal process, and also to find the optimal solution by which the court of cassation may decide on whether to conduct written or oral proceedings, and to develop scientifically based recommendations for improvement of current legislation of Ukraine. Considering the analysis of the essence of cassation proceedings and given the need to ensure procedural economy and reasonable simplification of the cassation procedure in the context of compliance with the ideology of “extraordinary” of this judicial stage, it is expedient to introduce to Ukraine’s CCrP the rule referring the form of cassation proceedings exclusively to the discretion of the court of cassation. The authors emphasize that it is advisable to introduce to Ukraine’s CCrP the rule according to which in cases where cassation proceedings are opened, the court at its discretion, depending on whether the materials on case file are sufficient for consideration of the cassation appeal, should rule on the cassation procedure in writing or in court. If there are certain preconditions, in particular if explanations and additional documents are needed from the parties and other participants of the court process for a legitimate and well-justified decision to be made, or if the court considers that the decision passed in the cassation procedure will be very important for the application of law and in other cases, the court of cassation rules on cassation proceedings in court. If the court, having chosen a written form of proceedings, following an examination of the materials provided arrives at the conclusion that they are insufficient for making a legitimate and 

Keywords cassation proceedings; procedural economy; optimization of criminal proceedings; written proceedings; legal issues
References

List of legal documents 
 

Legislation 
1. Rekomendacіja № 6R(87)18 Komiteta ministrov Soveta Evropy gosudarstvamchlenam “Otnositel’no uproshhenija ugolovnogo pravosudija” ot 17 sentjabrja 1987 [Recommendation No. 6R(87)18 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to Member States Concerning the Simplification of Criminal Justice Dated September 17, 1987] <http://zakon2.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/994_339> (accessed: 07.05.2018) (in Russian).
2. Kryminalnyi protsesualnyi kodeks Ukrainy [The Code of Criminal Procedure of Ukraine]: Zakon Ukrainy [the Law of Ukraine] vid 13 kvitnia 2012 р. № 4651-VI. URL: http://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/main/4651-17 (accessed: 31.08.2018) (in Ukrainian). 
3. Konstytutsiia Ukrainy [The Constitution of Ukraine]: Zakon Ukrainy [the Law of Ukraine] vid 28 chervnia 1996 р. № 254-к/96-ВР. URL: http://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/ main/254%D0%BA/96-%D0%B2%D1%80 (accessed: 31.08.2018) (in Ukrainian).

4. Kodeks administratyvnoho sudochynstva Ukrainy [The Code of Administrative Court Proceedings of Ukraine]: Zakon Ukrainy [the Law of Ukraine] vid 06 lypnia 2005 р. № 2747-IV. URL: http://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/main/2747-15 (accessed: 31.08.2018) (in Ukrainian). 

Cases 
5. Brumarescu v. Romania: Judgment 28.10.1999. Арр. 28342/95. URL: http://hudoc.echr. coe.int/eng?i=001-58337 (accessed: 31.08.2018) (in English). 
6. Ryabykh v. Russia: Judgment 24.07.2003. App. 52854/99. URL: http://hudoc.echr.coe. int/eng?i=001-61261 (accessed: 31.08.2018) (in English). 
7. Varela Assalino v. Portugal: Decision 25.04.2002. App. 64336/01. URL: http://hudoc. echr.coe.int/eng?i=001-181161 (accessed: 31.08.2018) (in English). 
 

Bibliography 
 

Authored books 
8. Vas’kovskij E, Uchebnik grazhdanskogo processa [Textbook of Civil Process]. (Zercalo 2003) 464 (in Russian). 

Articles 
9. Legkih K. ‘Krimіnal’nij procesual’nij kodeks Ukraїni: pis’move kasacіjne provadzhennja’ [‘The Code of Criminal Procedure of Ukraine: Written Cassation Proceedings’] (2012) Chasopis Akademії advokaturi Ukraїni 16 (in Ukrainian). 
10. Holovatiy S (translator), Rull of Law Сhecklist, adopted by the Venice commission (Venice, 11-12 march 2016) (in Ukrainian). 

 

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