The justice authorities are an essential element of the system of the state apparatus, which enforces the rule of law in compliance with regulatory legal acts in the country, performs numerous functions, and also has a number of specific powers that are inherent only to this state link.
XIX century: the beginning
The justice system of the Russian Empire was first introduced by the Russian emperor Alexander I, who issued a special manifesto on the establishment of ministries. This event occurred in 1802, September 8th. This normative legal act provided not only the powers of the justice authorities, but also proclaimed the minister as the head, whose position could only be occupied by the prosecutor general of the Russian Empire.
The activities of the judiciary at that time consisted of the preparation of legislative acts, as well as the coordination of prosecution and judicial institutions. as additional functions, the Ministry carried out the transfer, transfer, dismissal of official ranks occupying a place in the state apparatus. The first and most prominent Minister of Justice was Derzhavin Gavriil Romanovich, who in his life combined love of poetry and public activity.
The Ministry of Justice took a direct part in the implementation of the judicial reform, thanks to which the powers of the head of this body have significantly increased. At the time of the offensive of 1864, this control element was not only managing the judicial links and the prosecutor's office, but also was involved in the management of the prison and boundary units, and led the notary.
The role of the judiciary in history can be traced through sectoral reforms, for example, the ministry introduced the institution of justice of the peace, which functions to this day; He was directly involved in the development of public policy, as well as the implementation of the proclaimed regulatory documents.
XX century: post-revolutionary reforms
The history of the judiciary in the twentieth century turned into a transformation of the aforementioned department into a state body called the People’s Commissariat of Justice. Despite a radical change in the name of the ministry, its activities were carried out in the same direction - the formation of the judiciary and the selection of highly qualified professionals in their field. The direct role in the formation of the new state policy of the Soviet state consisted in the development and implementation of high-quality new legislation of the USSR.
In 1936, radical changes took place - the prosecutor's office stood out as an independent department. However, in connection with such reforms, the tasks of the judicial authorities are significantly increasing in the field of systematization and preparation of codified regulatory legal acts. The legislative process was made up of three major steps:
- Preparation of Civil, Criminal, Procedural codes, as well as other types of regulatory documents (Fundamentals of labor legislation and so on).
- Development of acts issued by the Government of the USSR.
- Reference activities in the field of legislation.
Research laboratories, institutes, and developments were also part of the judiciary. The functions of the state apparatus in the second half of the 20th century in the field of legislative activity were the most significant in comparison with other departments and had a direct impact on the Government of the USSR.
In 1991, the Supreme Council decided to continue to refer to this body as the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation. In 1992, all relevant amendments were made to the Constitution of the state, as well as new federal laws and other by-laws and regulations were issued.
Justice bodies: functions, concept, place at the present stage of state development
Today, the judiciary is an integral element of the government apparatus of the state. There are a lot of opinions about the terminological meaning of the word “justice”. Some suggest that the activity of justice means legitimate activity, while others believe that the transfer speaks of coordination of judicial activity. In any case, no matter what the point of view is closer to you, the terminological meaning of the word is associated with a legitimate activity, that is, one that is legal in nature. Understanding this issue in more detail, it is necessary to clarify that the terminological interpretation of the word "justice" is more related to historical traditions and the history of the development of this body.
At the moment, the justice authorities of the Russian Federation carry out organizational and managerial functions. The main regulatory document that coordinates the activities of the above-mentioned element of the state apparatus is the Regulation on the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation. An important role in this area is played by numerous resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation, as well as decrees of the head of state.
Justice bodies: tasks, functions, system
The judiciary is a government agency with the following list of tasks:
- Direct influence on the rule-making activities of the ruling bodies of the country - the President and the Government of the Russian Federation.
- Control over the publication of regulatory acts at the regional and local level, as well as verification of their legality and compliance with international acts, federal laws and by-laws. Legal due diligence, if necessary.
- Implementation of registration of acts of civil status, providing the possibility of state registration, as well as regulation of the conclusion of civil transactions, rights to real estate, registration of real estate and so on. this list is not exhaustive, as it is characterized by the activities of local authorities.
- Implementation of regulation of the field of legal services.
- Exercise of control over the implementation of legislative normative legal acts.
- Providing legal information to the public, as necessary, and on the most important issues.
The main functions of the judiciary are distributed according to its system, which is as follows:
- Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation.
- Bodies and institutions of the penal correction system.
- Ministry of Justice of the territories, republics and other regions that are part of the Russian Federation.
Ministry of Justice as the dominant, central apparatus of the system
Justice bodies are institutions and organizations that are part of the country's main Ministry of Justice. Such, as a rule, include notaries, registry offices, the Russian Academy of Law, legal information centers, forensic laboratories, editorial offices of official issue journals, and so on.
The Ministry of Justice is the central link, the main activity of which consists of leadership and coordinating powers in relation to the territorial bodies and institutions that are part of the above system. In Russia, the status of manager for this element of the state apparatus is the Minister of Justice, who bears personal legal responsibility for the completeness of the implementation of the tasks assigned to the ministry.
How does the “legislative” system work? The Minister of Justice submits draft regulatory documents for consideration by the head of state or the Government of the Russian Federation. It is important to note that the minister has the right to submit for consideration only those documents that are directly related to the activities carried out by him.
As for the structure of this government department, it consists mainly of departments, departments and divisions. Each structural unit is engaged in the type of activity assigned to it in the manner prescribed by regulatory legal acts. As an example, at the moment, the powers of the judicial authorities of the Russian Federation belong to the department for systematization of legislation, the management of expert institutions, the department of judicial practice and so on.
The supporting role is given to the Scientific Center for Legal Information, the Center for Forensic Expertise at the federal level, as well as the Russian Law Academy.
The judicial authorities of the Russian Federation in the subjects of the country
It is easy to guess, based on the above system, that the judicial authorities of the Russian Federation at the regional level are represented as ministries of territories, republics, departments of constituent entities of the Russian Federation. Each region determines its own head of the ministry as the head or minister.
All local justice authorities, regardless of the form of their formation, are subordinate to the Ministry of Justice and other federal executive bodies of state power. The powers of local justice bodies are largely similar to the activities of the central apparatus, so regional justice bodies perform tasks and functions as follows:
- They carry out norm-setting activities to the extent not prohibited by law.
- Organize the work of notaries in the field.
- Carry out licensing activities: the issuance of licenses, control over the period of validity, the application of legal measures of responsibility to persons who violate the law and so on.
In the future, it is planned to entrust the authorities of the constituent entities with the organization of providing the material and technical base for world courts.
The main areas of activity of the justice authorities in the subjects are:
- Legal support of rule-making activities.
- Implementation of state registration of local regulatory acts of both government bodies and legal entities and individuals (registration of real estate transactions, registration of acts of civil status, and so on).
Further, the directions are directly concretized in certain areas; tasks set depending on the goals; functions and powers.
The role of the Ministry of Justice in the rule-making activities of government bodies
One of the most important areas of activity (the concept of the judiciary confirms this) is norm-setting.
Carrying out the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation, representatives of the Ministry participate in the examination to verify the conformity of regulatory legal acts with respect to legality in relation to higher legal documents. Moreover, this applies only to those acts that are sent for signature to the president of the country and have not yet passed the stage of official publication. This branch also includes the authority to consider proposals of the Government of the Russian Federation on the issue of improving legislative activity. The Ministry of Justice is authorized to give conclusions on the need to develop a particular draft law, substantiating its point of view in writing.
Based on the foregoing, it is not surprising that the justice authorities of the Russian Federation have the authority to independently draft bills, which are subsequently submitted to the Government of the Russian Federation for consideration. A legal examination to verify the legality of normative legal acts consists in the fact that in case of any inconsistencies (the Constitution of the Russian Federation, federal law and so on), the body that adopted this document is issued a reasoned opinion. As a result of this, each body that adopted a particular legal act is required to send a copy to the Ministry of Justice for consideration.
Another area of activity is the implementation of work related to the systematization of legislation. So, justice in the Russian Federation contains the Unified Bank of State Regulations, where everyone can familiarize themselves with a particular norm. In addition, the Ministry of Justice is a direct participant in the drafting and publication of the Code of Laws of the Russian Federation.
Monitoring departments and agencies in the field
The implementation of this function is directly related to the rule-making activities of the justice authorities, as control is also carried out by checking the compliance of departmental legal acts with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, federal legislation and government decrees. Only after a full check of the "local" bill with the consent of the judiciary does it go through the stage of official publication. Those acts that failed to be registered, however, despite the disagreement of the justice authority, were made public, have no legal force, and, therefore, their non-compliance does not entail liability.
The control of local authorities is also carried out by state registration of their charters: all-Russian, interregional, international associations. Also in this category are religious organizations. In case of refusal of state registration of a religious education, it must immediately cease its activities, otherwise the association acquires the status of a religious sect that does not have a right to exist in Russia.
Another form of control is the exercise of state authority in the field of registration of commercial and non-commercial organizations. All necessary data must be entered in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities.
The bailiff service as a structural element of the apparatus of the Ministry of Justice
Numerous problems of the judiciary are related to the fact that they have an extensive range of powers, which is very difficult to differentiate between departments or departments. In order to clarify the structure of the functioning apparatus, it is necessary to mention a separate department, which is part of the Ministry of Justice - this is the Federal Bailiff Service.
The main activity of this structural unit is aimed at ensuring compliance with court hearings, the execution of criminal penalties in the form of a fine, as well as the implementation of other coercive measures.
The organization and coordination of the activities of this department are contained in the Federal Law "On Bailiffs", as well as in the regulatory legal acts regulating the activity of enforcement proceedings.
The structure of this structural unit includes:
- The main department of bailiffs directly related to the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation.
- The bailiff service of military courts.
- The bailiff service, located on the ground in the entities: in district or inter-district units.
All bailiffs are divided into two groups, depending on the functions they perform:
- Bailiffs who provide the established procedure for the activities and functioning of courts and court hearings.
- Bailiffs who are authorized to carry out a criminal penalty in the form of a fine, as well as other court decisions.
In order to exercise their powers, bailiffs have legal grounds for using physical force, for example, to ensure order in the courtroom.
The penal system as one of the elements of justice
The penal system is represented by the Central Office, the main task of which is to carry out coordinating activities and the development of state policy in the field of execution and serving of criminal sentences. In addition to the governing body, in the penal system there are a huge number of institutions directly executing criminal sentences, as well as applying other measures of a criminal law nature. The central office is presented in the form of a separate department called the Federal Penitentiary Service, which also has a certain hierarchical structure.
The UIS activity consists of the following areas:
- Execution of non-custodial sentences. As a rule, the main role here is assigned to structural units in the person of criminal executive inspectorates, which keep records, control the correction of persons convicted of compulsory labor, correctional labor, restriction of liberty, and so on.
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