Appealing Court Decisions Under the Draft Statute of Civil Procedure of 1857
Authors: Kovalchuk A.M. 
Published: November 2024

Introduction. In terms of the current large-scale procedural reform, which significantly affected the institutions of appeal and cassation, it seems quite logical to see an increase in interest in the history of the establishment and development of the system for appealing and verifying court decisions within the domestic tradition of civil procedure. In this regard, resort to the experience of preparing the Judicial Reform of 1864 and the draft Statute of Civil Procedure of 1857 gains currency, which in many respects served as the starting point for subsequent legislative work. Purpose. The purpose of this study is to describe the draft Statute of Civil Procedure of 1857 in the context of the possibilities of appeal of court decisions provided for in the Statute. Methods. In the framework of the study, mainly historical-legal and comparative-legal methods were used, as well as analysis, synthesis, a formal logical method, and a systematic approach. Results. In general, the draft Statute of Civil Procedure of 1857 corresponded to the idea of optimizing the procedure for appealing and verifying judicial acts that was relevant in that historical period. In accordance with the three-stage model of the organization of courts approved in the draft (district courts and court councils, chambers of the civil court and the Governing Senate), it was proposed to limit the consideration of the case to two instances (first and appeal). Limiting the right to submit new evidence to the court of appeal, the draft focused it to a much greater extent on verifying compliance with procedural law and the correct application of substantive law to the facts of the case established by a lower court. At the same time, improving the appellate procedure for appealing and verifying court decisions already known to domestic law, the developers of the draft aimed at reducing of the total volume of judicial procedures, defining a number of categories of cases that are finally resolved in the first instance. This circumstance necessitated fixing the possibility of bringing complaints about a part of such final (that is, not subject to appeal) decisions in the draft, if they were resolved with violations of judicial procedures. These possibilities of revocation of final decisions became one of the elements that then constituted the content of the cassation institution. Conclusion. The draft Statute of Civil Procedure of 1857 in many respects served as a starting point for subsequent legislative work as part of the preparation of the Judicial Reform of 1864. Thus, the idea of considering the merits of the case in two instances, set forth and described in it, was reflected in the Statute of Civil Procedure of 1864. At the same time, the draft significantly contributed to the further improvement of the institution of appeal, and the exceptions established therein, providing for the possibility of appealing against certain final court decisions, again led to the question of whether it would be appropriate to introduce another, special way of verifying judicial acts - the cassation.