Judicial system of the Republic of Belarus. General information

In accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus of 1994 the courts shall exercise judicial power in the Republic of Belarus. The Basic Law stipulates one of the most fundamental democratic principles of the state structure – principle of separation of powers on legislative, executive and judicial. Accordingly, judicial power is independent branch of power and consists of the system of general and economic courts and the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus.

Judicial system shall be based upon the principles of territorial delineation and specialization. Legal basis of judicial system and status of judges in detail are regulated by the Code of the Republic of Belarus on judicial system and status of judges of 29 June 2006.

Judicial power in the Republic of Belarus shall be executed only by judges of the courts and by peoples assessors which are joined to the administration of justice in the general courts. Judicial power is realized by means of constitutional, civil, criminal, economic and administrative proceedings. Judicial power is independent; it interacts with legislative and executive powers.

Unity of the judicial system is secured by way of:

by stipulation of the judicial system of the Republic of Belarus in the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus and in the Code of the Republic of Belarus on judicial system and status of judges;

obeying by all the courts of the order of legal procedure;

acknowledgement of the obligatory nature of execution on the while territory of the Republic of Belarus of the judicial verdicts, which enter into legal force;

stipulation of the unity of the status of judges;

financing of the courts from the republican budget.

Judicial system of the Republic of Belarus, as it was mentioned before, comprise of:

1.   The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus – body of judicial control of the constitutionality of the normative legal acts in the State, which exercise judicial power through the constitutional proceedings;

2.   General courts, which exercise justice by way of civil, criminal and administrative proceedings;

3.   Economic courts, which exercise justice through economic and administrative proceedings.

General and economic courts in the Republic of Belarus shall serve for the protection of the guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus and other acts of legislation personal rights and freedoms, social economic and political rights of citizens, constitutional order of the Republic of Belarus, state and social interests, rights of organizations, individual entrepreneurs, and also to secure proper enforcement of the legislation while administration of justice, to promote strengthening of the legality and prevention of offences.