Court hearing in a civil case, how it goes, procedure

Each court hearing in a civil case is unique. Even typical cases have their own characteristics, which depend on the presence/absence of evidence in a civil case, the identities of the plaintiff, defendant and third parties, and other circumstances. But each court hearing takes place according to a certain algorithm, the observance of which is strictly monitored by the judge. Which leads the process.

It is possible to go to court on your own. The site was specially created to help people who, for one reason or another, do not resort to the help of representatives. Therefore, we will tell you not only about preparing and filing a claim, but also about the general rules for conducting a court hearing in a civil case.

Before a court hearing in a civil case

After submitting documents to the court according to the rules of jurisdiction and appointing the composition of the court, a procedural decision is made - to accept the claim, leave it without moving, return the claim, or refuse to accept the claim. If the documents are in order, a civil case is prepared and a preliminary hearing is scheduled.

Before the main court hearing, the plaintiff should check whether the amount of the claim, the grounds or the subject of the claim have changed. Familiarize yourself with the response to the claim or counterclaim received in his address. It is possible to prepare your written objections to these documents. The defendant, in turn, prepares his evidence and substantiates his legal position.

It is advisable to appear early for a court hearing in a civil case. You must have your passport with you. The representative is given a power of attorney to represent interests in court. If the request to call witnesses is granted, the applicant ensures their appearance. That is, these persons also appear at the courthouse, but are not included in the court hearing along with the parties. They will be invited by the court secretary in due course.

Confirmation of your authority to participate in the case

The Arbitration Procedural Code establishes that each main participant in the process is obliged to confirm his authority to be present, as well as to represent the interests of third parties. Evidence of cause occurs at the beginning of every trial. In the absence of sufficient documents, the participant will not be allowed to participate in the procedure; he will only be able to be present in the courtroom without the possibility of filing motions (if the hearing is open).

The applicant in the case brings his passport to the court hearing, which confirms the legality of the claims, and also confirms his procedural status in court. In the event that the plaintiff does not attend on his own, but attracts a representative, his powers are documented. Otherwise, representation will not be available.

In the event that a participant cannot be involved in the procedure, a note about this is made in the minutes of the court session. The judge reflects the manifestation of initiative on the part of the participant, as well as the grounds for refusal.

A valid reason for refusal is failure to provide documents or submission of papers that are drawn up in violation of legal requirements.

In addition, the following circumstances will be legal grounds for refusal:

the power of attorney for representation has expired;
there is no date for issuing the permit;
inclusion in the power of attorney of an incomplete list of powers of the representative;
the contents of the power of attorney indicate that the powers are not transferred to the person who takes the initiative to represent the interests of the plaintiff;
the list of delegated powers does not provide for representation of the applicant’s interests in the arbitration court;
The plaintiff sent a petition to the court to revoke the previously executed power of attorney.

The Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court establishes a number of requirements that apply to submitted powers of attorney for representation. Namely:

only original documents;
the original is supported by the materials of the court case;
when using a copy, a document approved by a notary is used;
the judge himself may approve the copy used, but only on the condition that the court can familiarize itself with both the copy and the original power of attorney.

If, after the start of the trial, a new power of attorney was prepared in the name of the representative, its copy and original are submitted to the court for review.

How does a court hearing in a civil case work?

As a general rule, a civil case must be considered within 2 months from the receipt of materials in court, and cases regarding reinstatement at work, collection of alimony, demolition of unauthorized buildings - within 1 month. Like any case before a magistrate. In fact, it is rare that the court makes a decision in the first court hearing. It is usually delayed. For example, to request evidence. Proceedings may be suspended for examination in civil cases, etc.

When the judge enters, everyone present stands up. While standing, explanations and explanations are given and questions are asked to other persons. The case is being conducted by a judge, so even for those unfamiliar with the rules of the trial, if they pay close attention to the words of the judge, everything will be clear. The judge should be addressed as “Dear Court.”

First, the judge declares the hearing open. The secretary reports the attendance of persons and the reasons for non-appearance. Then he announces the composition of the court and asks about the existence of grounds for challenging the judge, secretary or other persons. The judge then explains the rights and responsibilities of the persons involved in the case. And examines the direction and receipt of judicial notices to those persons who did not appear at the trial. If applications to consider the case in the absence of such persons were not received.

Petitions and applications

The legislation establishes that compliance with the judicial procedure, as well as order at the court hearing, is mandatory. Therefore, guaranteeing each participant the opportunity to protect their interests, it is established that for this purpose the interested participant prepares statements and petitions to the court. The implementation of the right is carried out taking into account a number of requirements.

Timeliness

The appeal may not always be transferred to the court, but in accordance with the stage of the process. Thus, it is allowed to prepare a petition before the start of the first court hearing. This applies to cases when a disputant requests that not only a judge (a panel of judges), but also arbitration assessors be involved in the procedure.

Such a statement is prepared at least a month before the designated date of the meeting. The defendant may file an appeal immediately after becoming aware of the registered claim. In this case, the day for consideration of the conflict will be set only after 30 days.

Other types of applications are submitted after the trial has begun. This applies to requests to attract witnesses, reinforce evidence, or order additional examinations. Each application must be prepared on time. If deadlines are missed or, conversely, if a premature application is submitted, consideration of the application will be refused.

Motivation

It is not enough to simply compose the text of the application correctly. It is necessary to motivate him further. This means that legal claims must be justified by real facts and evidence. If this is, for example, an application to change a judge, then the person indicates a list of violations that, in his opinion, prevent the judge from further considering the dispute.

The full list of requirements, as well as the procedure and rules of motivation (list of grounds) is reflected in the Arbitration Procedural Code. But, as practice shows, sufficient motivation does not always guarantee that the petition will be considered by the court and granted.

In order to comply with the adversarial principle, it is allowed to challenge the petition by other participants at the stage of its submission to the court.

Example:
Citizen K. submits a petition to the court to compulsorily obtain documents from. According to the applicant, the original documents will help confirm the violation on the part of the director of the company. The participant was unable to obtain the papers on his own because he was denied access to the documentation.
The judge read out the text of the petition, to which the defendant said that the plaintiff had indeed requested documents and received copies of all papers. Therefore the requirement is not justified. The court took into account the defendant's remark and denied the appeal.

Correct design

A participant’s application can only be submitted in writing in compliance with the application form. Thus, the following data is entered into the content of the document:

personal information of the applicant, role in the trial;
number of the court proceedings within which the appeal was filed;
the name of the presiding judge who will consider the application;
the essence of the requirements;
motivation;
list of supported documents;
signature.

Procedure for holding a court hearing

The judge is obliged to clarify with the plaintiff and defendant their position on the case and establish the factual circumstances of the case. First, the plaintiff is interviewed. Does he support his demands, is it possible to conclude a settlement agreement, or other conciliation procedures? What evidence supports the plaintiff's position. The judge can ask questions, as can the defendant (with the permission of the judge), and third parties, the prosecutor, etc. The defendant then presents his position and may also be asked questions.

If there are no grounds for postponing the consideration of the case at this stage of the court hearing (for example, an application has been received to involve a third party, co-defendants, to replace the defendant, to issue a letter of request, etc.), the court begins to examine the evidence.

Since both the plaintiff and the defendant must receive written documents in advance, they are able to formulate their position based on the evidence. You can file a motion about the inadmissibility of evidence, about falsification, or declare that it is not relevant to the case. In general, there is no need to be afraid of a court hearing. Correct behavior is an attentive attitude to the words of the judge and an active position and behavior in the process. Disturbance of order at the meeting is not allowed. Otherwise, the court may apply a judicial fine. The court may also remove such a person from the hearing.

After examining the evidence, the judge will ask the parties and third parties for additional explanations. And then he will move on to legal arguments.

Judicial debates are the last opportunity to convey your position to the court. This stage consists of speeches. First the plaintiff speaks, then the defendant. The defendant has the right to make the last comment. You cannot refer to circumstances that were not clarified by the court and to evidence that was not examined.

In court alone and without a lawyer

If a client finds himself in court alone without a lawyer, he often does not know what to do. The rules of behavior in court are described in detail by procedural legislation, but how to behave with judges, and why attention should be paid to this, is not described anywhere.

About judicial status and its influence on personality

If I do not explain how the status of a judge affects his personal qualities, then in this publication I will only write about procedural legal norms, which everyone can read independently by looking at any reference legal system.

We must understand that people with power undergo psychological transformation and are different from ordinary people. They are not smarter or dumber, have no better or worse education, they are not better or worse than others - they are different! And this circumstance must be taken into account when communicating with judges so that you do not have to complain about them in the future. Just like with investigators, prosecutors, police officers and employees of other services and government bodies, about whom I write in other publications.

I had to meet with many judges of various judicial instances, with ordinary and heads of courts, and I have personal relationships with some. In addition, I myself consider cases as an independent arbitrator and observe the behavior of the parties to disputes from the place of the very person on whom the outcome of the case depends.

There are approximately four typical groups of judicial personalities (let's call it that), which are based not only on their moral qualities, but also on the psychological characteristics of the individual. Under the influence of these qualities, the relationship between the judge and the participants in the process (plaintiff, defendant, third party, defendant, victim, witness, etc.) develops, with the exception of professional participants - lawyers, prosecutors. I will not examine each group of judges in detail, but I will indicate their main behavioral characteristics and how they affect the participants in the process and ordinary people who are forced to communicate with them outside the court hearing.

Types of judicial personality

educated and powerful at the same time. Such people give orders in a respectful manner in a court hearing. Take full advantage of their status to manage the legal process. Psychologically, they do not oppress the participants in the process and command respect. There is no personal sympathy;
ill-mannered and domineering. For example, like the ones in this video . These also rule, but they can insult and even humiliate the participants in the process. They easily use their power for this purpose and demonstratively emphasize their judicial status. Participants in the process cause psychological oppression, suppress the will, cause irritation, opposition, disrespect and even hatred;
tactful, respectful. Power and status are used quietly, naturally. They also control the participants in the process imperceptibly and naturally, without pressure from their status and power. Court hearings take place in a working, friendly atmosphere. The participants in the process evoke respect and personal sympathy. Sometimes the losing party (the convicted person) takes the decision (sentence) for granted and does not even appeal it;
cold, indifferent, soft and weak-willed. Such different types are combined into one group, since all of them, by their behavior, provoke the participants in the process to free non-procedural actions, disorder, negligence, familiarity in the process and familiarity outside it. Such judges do not evoke any personal sympathy or respect among the participants in the process.

Typical behavior of participants in court

Since the main figure in the process is the judge, he also imposes a form of relationship on the participating persons, depending on his personal type.

types of behavior of participants in the process, and in court

weak, passive people, being in a depressed state, finding themselves in court without a lawyer due to various circumstances, become wingmen, react sluggishly to other participants, to the judge, which can cause him irritation or, at best, indifference, which increases the degree of permissiveness of the judge and the arbitrariness of his decision (sentence);
active, dependent people try to please the judge, seek his favor, hoping to evoke positive emotions in the judge and, against this background, expect positive bonuses from him in the decision (sentence). Such a calculation is not justified, since it provokes the judge to be permissive and increases arbitrariness in making a decision (sentence), regardless of the existing emotional background. Therefore, the decision (sentence) may be exactly the opposite of what the participants expected;
active, persistent, convinced, daring participants in the process, actively behave in court proceedings, although not always correctly and reasonably. Such participants, as a rule, are brawlers and complainers to all authorities known to them. They evoke negative emotions in the judge, which mobilizes him to be cautious in the hearing and when making a decision (sentence), too. Moreover, his decision often has a negative motivation. There is a known case when a judge wrote out her negative attitude towards a participant in the process on three pages of the decision;
balanced, calm, knowledgeable participants, as a rule, active in the process, confident, have good control over the situation, and work. Judges treat such people carefully, cautiously and with an understanding of the possible consequences for them when making a decision (sentence).

From what I have outlined here, readers should understand that the result of a court case is collectively influenced not only by the factual circumstances of the case, but also by the personal qualities of the judge, his perception and assessment of the behavior of the participants in the process.

Recommendations for participants in litigation without a lawyer

behave calmly, with dignity, but not defiantly or arrogantly;
even if you don’t like the judge, don’t show it, don’t demonstrate your attitude towards him;
do not argue with the judge, since he is the master of the situation;
Be careful in appearance, dress in court simply and classically, but in clean clothes. Don't try to demonstrate your poverty or prosperity;
show respect in your behavior towards the judge, even if you do not respect him as a person;
ignore and forgive a female judge emotional attacks, mood swings, weaknesses, if they do not affect the essence of the case;
don’t trust the judge’s word, check if you can check;
do not ingratiate yourself, do not humiliate yourself, do not try in any way to please the judge;
do not try to bribe the judge or interest him in some benefits - you, a stranger, will be regarded as a provocateur with all the negative consequences for you;
do not react emotionally to rudeness, ridicule and humiliation from the judge, if they happen, be indifferent, behave with restraint and dignity;
outside the court session, continue to behave with dignity, do not allow yourself or the judge to approach you with familiarity;
behave calmly and kindly outside the court hearing, remember that you may have to meet more than once.

Rest assured that all court visitors experience excitement when interacting with a judge in or out of court. There are several reasons for this anxiety, but the main one is the awareness of your dependence on the judge who is making a decision (sentence) that is significant for you. However, people experience such excitement when communicating with all law enforcement officers.

Important! Be attentive, careful and respectful in court, do not allow yourself to express yourself emotionally!

These are the basic rules of conduct for a client in court without a lawyer.

Checklists for criminal cases can be found here, for civil cases - here, for arbitration cases - here.

How to correctly and effectively appeal an investigator - here, and a judge - read here.

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End of court hearing in a civil case

The court hearing can end in different ways. The judge may postpone it, declare a break, or suspend the proceedings. Even after the judicial debate (but before the court retires to the deliberation room), a situation may arise when it is necessary to clarify new circumstances. Then the court issues a ruling to resume consideration of the case on the merits. And new evidence is being explored.

If the judicial debate ends, the court retires to the deliberation room. To make a decision on the merits. Thus, a court hearing in a civil case ends with the announcement of a court decision in the case.