TRANSFORMATIONAL PROCESSES OF THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM IN UKRAINIAN LANDS AFTER THE JUDICIAL REFORM OF 1864

Abstract

The article reveals the transformational processes of the judicial system in Ukrainian lands after the Judicial Reform of 1864. It is noted that the judicial reform was an important element of reforming the general imperial legislation in the middle of the 19th century. It was characterized by the greatest consistency among the declared contemporary transformations of the entire imperial legislation. Its advantages were quite clearly manifested against the background of judicial procedures that existed in the pre-reform period. It is argued that the need to reform the judicial system became an objective need of time, because there was an extremely wide range of courts in the country, the jurisdiction of which was often not determined, a different order of judicial proceedings was observed, which ultimately had a negative effect on the procedure of applying to court for the protection of their rights and interests. It is emphasized that the democratic principles announced after the judicial reform made it possible to introduce a new court, which had an omnibus character and was designed to provide adequate guarantees of a fair and impartial trial. This principle was to be implemented by court chambers that were introduced throughout the country. It is noted that the Kharkiv, Odesa and Kyiv court chambers were established on the territory of Ukrainian provinces at different times. In the process of establishing new judicial institutions, the judicial chambers had the authority to carry out various types of activities. The importance of court chambers steadily grew and gradually they became an essential and effective element of introducing judicial reforms in the country. The Chambers were declared to be the appellate authority in relation to the decisions of the district courts, and also acted as the court of first instance in cases defined by law. It was noted that, along with the judicial chambers, there were magistrates' courts, which tried small civil and criminal cases, and district courts, whose competence included cases that did not belong to the scope of the justices of the peace and the competence of the judicial chambers. The highest judicial body in the state was determined by the Senate. It is noted that the transformational processes of the judicial system did not always go smoothly and encountered considerable difficulties. This was primarily due to the fact that individual territories were different in terms of their development and composition, and therefore the simultaneous implementation of the norms of court statutes within the borders of the entire country did not seem possible. There was a question regarding the financial and personnel support of the reform, which was not resolved at the start of judicial transformations. In view of this, the implementation of the norms of judicial statutes was significantly slowed down, which often led to inconsistency in the activities of members of judicial institutions, and also affected the effectiveness of the functioning of judicial institutions.