The Council of Judges of Russia has prepared rules for visiting courts

The Council of Judges of the Russian Federation has prepared rules for visiting courts – with an explanation of why a person may not be allowed to attend a meeting. Thus, you cannot come to the courthouse in sportswear or beachwear, in shorts above the knee, as well as in clothes and shoes with inscriptions and drawings “indicating a clear disrespect for society and the court.” Lawyers support the idea of ​​uniform rules for all courts, but note that some wording requires clarification.

The Ministry of Justice asked the Council of Judges to prepare general rules for visiting courts back in October 2018. Previously, the chairman of each court independently set requirements for the appearance of visitors. But in 2018, this practice turned into a loud conflict. The bailiffs of the Nevsky District Court refused to allow a witness wearing shorts into the building. Lawyer Lidiya Golodovich went to the chairman for clarification, but the secretary refused to let her into the office without an appointment. An argument began and a court employee pressed the panic button. As a result, the lawyer was detained by employees of the Russian Guard; she was handcuffed and taken to the police station. Later, the Russian Guard said that Ms. Golodovich scratched his shoulder, and the bailiff complained that the defender swung at him. The defender herself claimed that it was the security forces who caused her injuries; She spent several days in the hospital. In 2021, the Frunzensky District Court found Lidiya Golodovich guilty of using violence against a government official and fined her 200 thousand rubles.

In July 2020, the Council of Judges sent the Ministry of Justice the first draft of requirements for staying in courts. In the fall of 2021, the department sent its comments, and now the Council of Judges, by its resolution, approved the final document. The “Model Rules for the Stay of Visitors in Courts” regulate the procedure and organization of admission of citizens to the building, security measures and rules of conduct. For example, they list all the documents that require a person to be admitted to court. This is a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation (including foreign, diplomatic and service), a temporary identity card of a citizen of the Russian Federation, a birth certificate (for citizens of the Russian Federation under 14 years of age), an identity card of a military man or sailor, a military ID, a driver’s or service license, a lawyer’s ID, a passport of a foreign citizen, a refugee certificate, a certificate of consideration of an application for recognition as a refugee on the territory of the Russian Federation, as well as an identification document of a stateless person, and “other identification documents in accordance with federal legislation.”

Separately, the Council of Judges described the rules for media representatives. Bailiffs are required to let journalists through if they present an official ID or identification document. “It is not permitted to deny access to the court building (premises) to representatives of the media due to lack of accreditation and for other reasons not provided for by law,” the document says.

The rules allow bailiffs to refuse to let a person into court if he does not have an identity document or if he refuses to produce one. Another reason is refusal to go through a metal detector (unless this is caused by medical contraindications). The grounds for non-admission will be being in a state of alcoholic, narcotic or toxic intoxication, as well as appearance “not meeting sanitary and hygienic requirements.” Among other things, people in sports or beach clothes and shoes, shorts above the knees, and “clothing that does not allow personal identification” will not be allowed into court. Clothing and shoes with inscriptions and drawings that “offend human dignity or indicate a clear disrespect for society and the court” were also banned. Finally, children under 14 years of age will not be allowed into the courthouse unless accompanied by legal representatives, close relatives or guardians, as well as citizens with animals (with the exception of a guide dog).

The council also compiled a rough list of items that are prohibited from being brought into the courthouse. These include weapons (does not apply to law enforcement officers), explosives and explosive devices; narcotic and psychotropic substances and their analogues; toxic and radioactive substances; flammable liquids; household gas cylinders; alcoholic and alcohol-containing products; bicycles and vehicles (except wheelchairs); objects, materials of a propaganda nature (posters, banners, flags, leaflets), as well as “other objects, substances and means that pose a threat to the safety of others.”

Formally, the council does not require compliance with these particular “Model Rules” – the organization invites each court to approve its own procedure based on them. But the Federal Chamber of Lawyers (FPA) indicates that court chairmen will, in any case, have to take this document into account when approving visitation rules.

Denis Laktionov, vice-president of the Federal Chamber of Lawyers and president of the Leningrad Region Bar Chamber, told Kommersant that the incident of denying access to a witness in 2018 was far from isolated. Both he and his colleagues were repeatedly faced with the fact that different courts had different requirements and restrictions for visitors. Therefore, he believes that uniform rules are the right solution, since they bring the situation “to a common denominator.” At the same time, Mr. Laktionov draws attention to the ambiguous wording in the document of the Council of Judges. In particular, he is confused by the clause banning “species that do not meet sanitary and hygienic requirements.” “It is not clear what specific requirements these are and how they should be assessed by bailiffs,” the lawyer argues. It is also unclear to him how the bailiffs can establish the state of narcotic or toxic intoxication. The next point is a ban on sports shoes: “Now many people wear sneakers because they are comfortable. However, now the bailiff may not let in a person wearing sneakers because of sports shoes. This could result in important witnesses being excluded from the hearing, thereby prejudicing justice.”

“I hope that after the adoption of this document there will be fewer disputes about who can go to court and who cannot, in what form and for what purpose,” says capital lawyer Marina Agaltsova. However, the defense lawyer is confused by the clause about clothing, which “indicates a clear disrespect for society and the court”: “For example, to many hearings where political activists are tried, people come wearing “freedom for so-and-so” T-shirts. It’s not clear whether it’s already “obvious disrespect” or not?”

Emilia Gabdullina