Laws on the integration of the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions into the judicial system of the Russian Federation entered into force on April 20-21. In the DPR and the LPR, the supreme and arbitration courts of the republics are being created, and in the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions – the regional courts and the arbitration courts of the regions.
Garrison, inter-district, district and city military courts will also be established in the new areas.
The laws determine the procedure for the transmission to the established courts of cases and complaints accepted for prosecution, but not yet examined by the courts. The day on which the newly established courts will begin to operate will be determined by the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation.
The selection of candidates for the initial composition of the federal common law courts and the arbitral tribunal is envisaged. It will be organized on a competitive basis by the High Qualification Jury. Candidates, according to the new rules, must meet the requirements of the law “On the status of judges in the Russian Federation”.
Candidates will be selected from citizens of the Russian Federation, as well as judges who held relevant positions in the region at the time of joining the Russian Federation, but the candidate must have Russian citizenship and meet the requirements of the position .
The referendums on the entry of the DPR, LPR, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions into the Russian Federation were held from September 23 to 27, 2022. In the DPR, 99.23% of those who voted for the membership in Russia, in the LPR – 98.42%, in the Kherson region – 87.05%, in the Zaporizhzhia region – 93.11%. After that, on September 30, agreements were signed in the Kremlin on the admission of new territories to the Russian Federation.
In November 2022, Vladimir Putin demanded that the integration of new regions into the Russian judicial system be organized as soon as possible. The relevant laws were signed by the head of state in April.
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