As in any legal proceeding in civil proceedings, an important place is judicial proof. According to the Civil Procedure Code of Russia, not all legal facts must be proved, there are circumstances and facts that cannot be proved.
However, the bulk of the legal facts relevant to the consideration of the case is subject to proof. In this article, we briefly consider such facts and deal with what generally constitute the subject of proof and facts that cannot be proved.
General information
The institute of evidence in civil proceedings is regulated by the 6th chapter of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation. Evidence is the most important litigation, with the help of which the specific circumstances of the case, which affect the resolution of a civil dispute, are clarified.
Achieving timely and correct consideration and resolution of civil disputes is possible only if the circumstances and facts related to this trial are correctly established.
The concept and purpose of judicial evidence
Judicial evidence in a trial is a procedural activity aimed at studying the factual circumstances of a case in order to reasonably resolve a civil law conflict.
In the process of proof, the participation of all subjects of civil legal relations related to a particular trial is necessary. Due to the evidence, the legal position in the case of these entities can change, and the court, on the basis of the evidence, comes to the conclusion that is reflected in the decision in the case.
Thus, the purpose of judicial proof is the knowledge of the circumstances of the case by the court, through their proving by the subjects of the process.
The process of proof includes several stages: identifying the circle of facts to be proved, searching for evidence, researching and evaluating it. The court determines which side is to prove a particular fact.
Civil evidence
Information about the facts and circumstances of a civil case obtained in the course of evidence is called evidence. On their basis, the court has the opportunity to establish the validity of the claims and claims of the plaintiff and the defendant's objections in the case, as well as to find out other circumstances affecting the resolution of the dispute.
Information on facts to be proved cannot be ignored by the court in the course of the proceedings and must be taken into account when making the decision. Such information is brought to court through various means of evidence, which include:
- Explanations of the parties and third parties in the case.
- Testimony of witnesses.
- Material and written evidence.
- Video and audio recordings.
- Expert opinions.
Note that failure to submit relevant evidence to the court is punishable by a fine, the imposition of which does not exempt a person from presenting evidence to the court.
Evidence
Evidence may represent not only information about the facts to be proved, but also be evidence. The GIC does not mention this term. The reason for this is that such facts are auxiliary, that is, with the help of evidence-based facts, one or another sought legal fact can be established.
For example, if it is necessary to prove a legal fact, which consists in the fact that a person could not harm another person, you can use such evidence as the absence of the defendant in the place where the damage was caused.
Subject of evidence
The whole set of legal facts in the case is the circumstances of the case, some of which must be clarified to resolve the conflict on the merits, while others are clarified in order to resolve any procedural issues. The first group of facts is the subject of proof, while all legal facts are collectively called the limits of proof.
The subject of proof is one of the most important elements of proof and is a complex of legal facts, the reliability of which must be ascertained by the court in order to make an informed decision in a civil case. Note that evidence is also included in the subject of proof.
The specifics of proof and the formation of the subject of proof depends on the type of civil conflict under consideration.
The subject of evidence may vary over the course of the case for various reasons, such as, for example, the defendant presenting a counterclaim or changing the size of the claimant's claim.
Facts beyond proof
The subject of evidence does not include all legal facts that are relevant to the case in question. Facts that cannot be proved are not an element of proof. Such facts include well-known and prejudicial facts. In addition to the established facts, circumstances recognized by the party and notarized facts are not subject to proof.
In the Civil Procedure Code of Russia, the grounds exempting from the proof of legal facts are established by 61 articles.
Well-known facts
Facts that cannot be proved in a civil process include facts and circumstances known to a wide circle of people (the whole world or residents of a local territory). This fact is characterized by the ease of proof, so there is no need to prove it.
As examples of well-known facts, historical facts and facts about natural disasters are most often considered. Notor facts can also be considered as an example of well-known facts, since the proof of such facts in a general manner is not carried out, but consists only in referring to reliable reliable sources.
At the same time, well-known and well-established opinions and generalizations based on an assessment of something are not considered to be well-known facts in society.
A key feature of well-known facts is the recognition by the court of a fact as such. This leads to such signs as objectivity and subjectivity of the well-known fact. Objectivity implies that the fact is known to the general public, and subjectivity means the fact is known to the entire composition of the court (or the ability to quickly obtain relevant information from accessible and reliable sources).
If any scientifically proven fact is considered as a well-known fact, then an expert in the relevant field of knowledge can be invited to confirm it.
Prejudicial Facts
According to the Code of Civil Procedure, the facts established by the court are not subject to proof. We are talking about such facts that were previously established by a decision or court verdict in other cases that have entered into legal force. At the same time, it does not matter by which court the verdict or decision is passed, and in the framework of which process (criminal, arbitration, etc.). In the case of prejudicial facts, the court resolving the civil law dispute shall demand a copy of the relevant document (sentence or decision).
If the verdict or decision was canceled in the prescribed manner, then the facts established in them lose their prejudice. Neither are the prejudicial facts established in the framework of the lawsuit, the issue on which was not resolved.
It is important to note that in the indicated cases the same persons should have participated as in the civil case under consideration, in the framework of which the evidence is carried out. The facts established by the court are not subject to proof by the party that bases its claims or objections on them, if such circumstances and facts were voluntarily recognized by the other party to the process.
Prejudicial facts, like well-known facts, have objective and subjective limits. Subjective limits are established by the circle of persons for whom the court decision or sentence in question will have prejudicial significance. An objective limit implies that a decision in a case has legal force and is not subject to revision.
Conclusion
So, we examined the concept of the subject of proof and facts not subject to proof. The procedural law contains indications of such facts in articles 61 and 68.
Facts that cannot be proved in a civil proceeding are recognized as such by the court, although initiative on this may come from participants in a civil proceeding. Consequently, it is the court that has the exclusive powers, which also include changing the subject of evidence.
Incorrect establishment or interpretation by the court of circumstances, which are subject to and not subject to proof, may lead to the adoption of an unreasonable court decision and, as a result, to its further cancellation. Given the above, we can conclude that evidence in a civil trial is of fundamental importance.
Significantly simplifies the process of proving the presence of facts, the proof of which is not mandatory. Thus, the court has the ability to use certain information without resorting to proof, since such information is reliable by default or its reliability has already been established by the court earlier.