In any trial, regardless of its focus, there are its own nuances and subtleties. Often the outcome of a case depends entirely on their knowledge and understanding. Unfortunately, the legal literacy of the population is far from the desired level, and finding a really worthy lawyer is quite difficult. This article talks about prejudicial fact. This knowledge is necessary not only to a specialist in the field of jurisprudence, but also to ordinary people who are currently solving issues related to court hearings.
Deciphering the term
An explanation of any information should begin with the basics. First you need to determine the meaning of the term. So, a prejudicial fact - this concept, which came to us from the Latin language, means "referring to a previous court decision." In simple terms, prejudice is "prejudice." In the legislative acts of Russia there is no specific fixed interpretation of the term. The point is that prejudicial facts are facts that do not require proof in all subsequent courts in this case, since their presence has already been established by a court decision that has entered into legal force. All further meetings should accept this information without verification or evidence.
Prejudice Provisions
Well-known and prejudicial facts in the case file must be accepted by the court without having to re-prove and verify them. In addition, it was noted that such facts are forbidden to be refuted in subsequent processes. These changes entered into force in 2010. Until that time, facts that were doubtful by a party could be cross-checked by the courts, prosecutors, interrogators or investigators. Now, this action is prohibited by law, which is prescribed in the Criminal Code in article 90 with the same name as “Prejudice”. In addition, this rule applies not only to criminal proceedings, but also to cases relating to arbitration and civil. There is also a Federal Law regulating the principle of prejudice in tax relations - No. 383- dated December 29, 2009.
Prejudicial facts in civil proceedings
The Civil Code has an interesting nuance. You can designate it this way: the term "prejudice" is not, but the principle itself exists. It is formulated as "grounds for exemption from evidence." Prejudicial facts in the arbitration process have the same feature. The judge of the arbitration or civil procedure is obliged to clarify in advance of the dispute the information on the availability of court decisions that have already taken place, with the participation of these persons. This refers not only to the plaintiff and defendant, but also to other people who are interested in the outcome of the case.
Inactive Persons
In an Arbitration or Civil Procedure, a prejudicial fact is a circumstance that is taken into account when considering cases with the same composition of persons in the process as in the previous one. If the person did not appear in the previous meeting, he may file a separate lawsuit. At the same time, decisions that have entered into legal force in the past are not binding on the judge. Moreover, these decisions are not recommendatory in nature either. If the court draws a different conclusion on the dispute than in the judicial act of the last meeting, it must indicate its motives.
Article 69 of the Code of Arbitration Procedure, which refers to the same composition of persons participating in the new process, does not imply a complete identity of the composition of the participating entities. Moreover, a clear criterion on the degree of identity does not exist. Conclusion: in most cases, whether the court accepts the fact as prejudicial depends on the particular judge, as well as the persuasiveness and perseverance of one or another side of the process.
The question of the legality of judicial acts
At the discretion of the court, the question of whether to accept prejudicially established facts cannot be brought up. This is a norm established by law. It is the law that determines its limits, order, and also the consequences. The purpose of prejudice is to eliminate contradictions between court decisions. For the courts, this means the impossibility of re-examining the established facts, for the parties to the process - a ban on the provision of evidence on them. If the court does not take into account the prejudice, there are ways to assert their rights. Such a decision may be appealed on appeal or cassation. Since failure to take prejudice into account is a violation of the legitimate rights of the party, the decision on this trial may be reversed.
One more point should be noted. Arbitration courts do not have the power to review the legality of judicial acts of other instances. In turn, the decision on the legality of the acts of the Arbitration Court does not have the right to consider courts of general jurisdiction.
Open prejudice questions
A prejudicial fact is a concept that is clearly stated only in the Code of Criminal Procedure. In arbitration and civil proceedings, this concept is rather vague, as a result of which there are controversial situations. Sometimes the use of prejudice entails a violation of human rights and freedoms. In some situations, the application of this rule is contrary to the position of the Constitutional Court. In addition, a clear priority is not defined between the courts and acts of judicial proceedings at different levels. Another issue is outdated law. If a fact is tied to outdated legislation, it often contradicts human rights and the position of the court. Based on the above list, it would be more reasonable to leave the prejudice to the discretion of the court, but at the same time not remove this norm from the law and not reduce its importance in legal proceedings.
Examples of prejudice in arbitration and civil litigation
The most common example of applying prejudice in the arbitration process is debt collection. For example, an organization has recovered a debt from a counterparty for delivered batches of goods. The second process will be the recovery of the penalty and compensation for losses due to violation of the terms of payment for shipped material assets. In the second process, it is not required to prove the presence of debt at a specific date specified in the contract between the partners.
An example in the civil process is as follows: the mother of the child filed a lawsuit in order to determine the place of residence of the child together with her. The purpose of the next lawsuit is to recover child support from the father in favor of the child.
What matters to the arbitral tribunal
So, in the end of the article we summarize. The following describes what you won’t have to prove in an arbitration court:
- Well-known circumstances of the case, initially established in the arbitration court or court of general jurisdiction, while the participation of the same composition of persons is not necessary.
- Facts established by the first arbitral tribunal relevant to the next dispute. The composition of the persons should be the same as in the first process.
- The circumstances affecting the persons in the current process established by the court of general jurisdiction, the composition of the persons does not matter.
- The verdict issued by the criminal court on the presence / absence and commission / imperfection of actions. The composition of persons does not matter.
The judicial act must contain notes on the link to 2 hours 69 of art. APC of the Russian Federation, details of a prejudicial judicial act (case No., date of consideration, as well as the name of the court) and the facts that became the basis of this case, which were proved earlier, are stated.