The magistrate must hear the civil case within the deadline. Time limits for consideration of civil cases

1. To fulfill the provisions of Art. 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure, tasks for the timely consideration and resolution of civil cases. The Code imposes on the subjects of the process the obligation to carry out procedural activities within the time limits established by law or the court (Part 1 of Article 107 of the Code of Civil Procedure). The court itself, which exercises control over the procedural activities of all other participants in the consideration of the case, is obliged to comply with the procedural deadlines established by law. In particular, the general terms for consideration and resolution of cases by the court of first instance are provided for in the commented article.
The court (judge) is obliged to set reasonable time limits for other subjects to perform relevant procedural actions, taking into account the requirements of the law on the general time limit for proceedings civil case, as well as rely on it when resolving all issues that arise during the consideration of the case. Only in complex cases that require a long time to prepare for trial, the judge, when preparing the case, taking into account the opinions of the parties in accordance with Part 3 of Art. 152 of the Code of Civil Procedure has the right to go beyond the established time limits for consideration and resolution of cases.
2. In accordance with Art. 133 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the judge is given a five-day period to consider the issue of accepting the application, however, the law connects the beginning of the period for consideration and resolution of civil cases not with the moment the application is accepted for court proceedings, but with the moment the application is received by the court. Only for the magistrate this period is calculated from the moment the application is accepted for proceedings.
Along with general deadlines (up to one month for a justice of the peace and up to two months for other courts of first instance), procedural legislation also provides for shortened deadlines for the consideration and resolution of civil cases. In the commented article, in essence, only one category of cases with a shortened period of consideration and resolution (up to one month) is named - cases of reinstatement at work. Another of those named in Part 2 of Art. 154 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the categories of cases (on the collection of alimony) refers to the jurisdiction of the magistrate, who is obliged to resolve all cases within up to one month.
At the same time federal laws, to which Part 3 of Art. 154 of the Code of Civil Procedure, other categories of civil cases are provided with reduced periods for consideration and resolution. A significant part of them are named in other norms of the Code.
Thus, an application for recognition of a normative legal act invalid must be considered by the court in month period from the moment of its filing (Part 2 of Article 252 of the Code of Civil Procedure), an application to challenge decisions and actions (inaction) of authorities state power, local government bodies, officials, state and municipal employees - within ten days (Part 1 of Article 257). Shortened processing times are provided for cases of protection of electoral rights (Article 260 of the Code of Civil Procedure), in cases of forced hospitalization of a citizen in a psychiatric hospital and forced examination (Articles 304, 306 of the Code of Civil Procedure), in cases of challenging decisions of an arbitration court (Part 1 of Art. 420 Code of Civil Procedure), in cases of extradition writs of execution for the forced execution of decisions of arbitration courts (Part 1 of Article 425 of the Code of Civil Procedure).
The end of the period for consideration and resolution of the case is the day the court makes a decision on the merits or makes a ruling to terminate its proceedings or to leave the application without consideration (clause 1 of the resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated June 26, 2008 No. 13 “On the application of the norms of Civil procedural code Russian Federation when considering and resolving cases in the court of first instance" * (183).
3. Requirements procedural rules are formulated in such a way that the trial of the case is completed, as a rule, at the very first court hearing. Only an anomalous development of the process can lead to a postponement of the trial of the case, but even in this case the deadline for re-trial court session must be appointed in compliance with the procedural deadlines established by law for the consideration and resolution of civil cases. It should also be taken into account that violation of the procedural deadlines established by law for the court does not exempt it from performing the necessary procedural actions aimed at the correct and prompt consideration and resolution of the case.
The foregoing means that the presence of a civil case in court proceedings beyond the time limits established by law should encourage the judge, who performs at the court hearing in accordance with Part 1 of Art. 156 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the duties of the presiding officer are to take vigorous measures to complete it. Further delay in resolving such a case with the expiration of each subsequent day only aggravates negative consequences violation of legal requirements creates additional difficulties in achieving the ultimate goals of legal proceedings.
4. The Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation has repeatedly drawn the attention of judges to the need to comply with the deadlines for consideration of cases and to increase their personal responsibility for fulfilling the relevant requirements of the law. In particular, in paragraph 2 of Resolution No. 52 of December 27, 2007 “On the time limits for consideration by the courts of the Russian Federation of criminal, civil cases and cases of administrative offenses,” he drew attention to the fact that for a gross or systematic violation by a judge of procedural law, which entailed unjustified violation of the deadlines for resolving the case and significantly infringing on the rights and legitimate interests of the participants trial, taking into account specific circumstances, a disciplinary sanction may be imposed, up to and including termination of the judge’s powers * (184).

The time frame for consideration and resolution of civil cases is defined in Art. 154 Code of Civil Procedure. Civil cases are considered and resolved by the court before the expiration of two months from the date of receipt of the application to the court (including the time of preparation of the case for trial), and by the magistrate before the expiration of one month from the date of acceptance of the application for proceedings. There are also shortened deadlines in claim proceedings - one month is established for the consideration of cases of reinstatement at work and the collection of alimony (Part 2 of Article 154 of the Code of Civil Procedure). Federal laws may provide for shorter periods for consideration and resolution of other categories of cases. In cases where one process combines demands, of which the law has established a shortened period for some, and a general term for others, the case is subject to consideration within the general period. Special deadlines are provided for in proceedings in cases arising from public legal relations:

1) applications to challenge a normative legal act must be considered within one month from the date of filing the application (Part 2 of Article 252 of the Code of Civil Procedure);

2) applications to challenge decisions, actions (inaction) of state authorities, local governments, officials, state and municipal employees are considered and resolved within ten days from the date of filing the application (Part 1 of Article 257 of the Code of Civil Procedure);

3) statements on the protection of voting rights and the right to participate in a referendum:

Filed in court during an election campaign or preparation for a referendum - are considered within five days from the date of their filing, but not later in the day preceding voting day;

If the facts contained in the application require additional verification, a decision regarding the application is made no later than ten days from the date of filing the application:

Exceptions to the general time limits for consideration and resolution of cases also exist in special proceedings. Thus, applications for forced hospitalization of a citizen in a psychiatric hospital are considered by the court within five days from the date of initiation of the case. An application for the issuance of a writ of execution for compulsory execution by an arbitration court is considered by a judge within a period not exceeding one month. In the appellate instance, the period for considering a complaint against the decision of the magistrate is up to two months from the date the case was received by the court and appeal. Time limits for consideration of cases in court cassation instance vary depending on which court it is considered. Supreme Court of the Republic, Regional, regional court, a court of a federal city, a court of an autonomous region, an autonomous district, a district (naval) military court must consider the case, based on a cassation appeal or a proposal from the prosecutor, no later than within one month from the date of its receipt. Supreme Court of the Russian Federation - within two months from the date of receipt of the case. Shortened period for consideration cassation appeals, submissions of the prosecutor in cases of protection of voting rights or the right to participate in a referendum of citizens of the Russian Federation are considered within five days

1. Civil cases are considered and resolved by the court before the expiration of two months from the date of receipt of the application by the court, unless other terms for consideration and resolution of cases are established by this Code, and by the magistrate before the expiration of a month from the date of acceptance of the application for proceedings.

2. Cases regarding reinstatement at work and collection of alimony are considered and resolved before the end of the month.

3. Federal laws may establish shortened deadlines for consideration and resolution of certain categories of civil cases.

Commentary on Article 154 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation

1. In order to fulfill the task provided for in Article 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure for the timely consideration and resolution of civil cases, the Code imposes on the subjects of the process the obligation to carry out procedural activities within the time limits established by law or the court (Part 1 of Article 107 of the Code of Civil Procedure). The court itself, which exercises control over the procedural activities of all other participants in the consideration of the case, is also obliged to comply with the procedural deadlines established by law. In particular, the general terms for consideration and resolution of cases by the court of first instance are provided for in the commented article.

The court (judge) is obliged to set reasonable time limits for other subjects to perform relevant procedural actions, taking into account the requirements of the law on the general period of proceedings in a civil case, and also be guided by it when resolving all issues that arise during the consideration of the case. Only in complex cases that require a long time to prepare for trial, the judge, when preparing the case, taking into account the opinions of the parties in accordance with Part 3 of Article 152 of the Code of Civil Procedure, has the right to go beyond the established time limits for the consideration and resolution of cases.

2. In accordance with Article 133 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the judge is given a five-day period to consider the issue of accepting the application, however, the law connects the beginning of the period for consideration and resolution of civil cases not with the moment the application is accepted for court proceedings, but with the moment the application is received by the court. Only for the magistrate this period is calculated from the moment the application is accepted for proceedings.

Along with general deadlines (up to one month for a magistrate and up to two months for other courts of first instance), procedural legislation also provides for other deadlines for the consideration and resolution of civil cases. In the commented article, in essence, only one category of cases with a shortened period of consideration and resolution (up to one month) is named - cases of reinstatement at work. Another of the categories of cases named in Part 2 of Article 154 of the Code of Civil Procedure (on the collection of alimony) falls under the jurisdiction of the magistrate, who is obliged to resolve all cases within up to one month.

At the same time, federal laws, to which Part 3 of Article 154 of the Code of Civil Procedure refers, also provide for other categories of civil cases with reduced periods for consideration and resolution. A significant part of them are named in other norms of the Code.

Thus, an application to recognize a normative legal act as invalid must be considered by the court within a month from the date of its filing, however, for the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, the consideration period is three months (Part 2 of Article 252 of the Code of Civil Procedure), an application to challenge decisions and actions (inaction) state authorities, local governments, officials, state and municipal employees must be considered within ten days, only for the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation the period for its consideration is set at one month (Part 1 of Article 257). Shorter processing times are provided for cases on the protection of electoral rights (Article 260 of the Code of Civil Procedure), in cases of forced hospitalization of a citizen in a psychiatric hospital and forced examination (Article 304, 306 of the Code of Civil Procedure), in cases of challenging decisions of an arbitration court (Part 1 of Art. .420 of the Code of Civil Procedure), in cases of issuing writs of execution for the forced execution of decisions of arbitration courts (Part 1 of Article 425 of the Code of Civil Procedure).

The end of the period for consideration and resolution of the case is the day the court makes a decision on the merits or makes a ruling to terminate its proceedings or to leave the application without consideration (clause 1 of the resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated June 26, 2008 No. 13 “On the application of the norms of the Civil Procedure Code of the Russian Federation”) Federation when considering and resolving cases in the court of first instance."

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BVS RF. 2008. N 10.

3. The requirements of procedural norms are formulated in such a way that the trial of the case is completed, as a rule, at the very first court hearing. Only an anomalous development of the process can lead to a postponement of the trial of the case, but even in this case, the date for the retrial must be set in compliance with the procedural deadlines established by law for the consideration and resolution of civil cases. It should also be taken into account that violation of the procedural deadlines established by law for the court does not exempt it from performing the necessary procedural actions aimed at the correct and prompt consideration and resolution of the case.

The above means that the presence of a civil case in court proceedings beyond the time limits established by law should encourage the judge, who performs the duties of the presiding officer at the court hearing in accordance with Part 1 of Article 156 of the Code of Civil Procedure, to take vigorous measures to complete it. Further delay in resolving such a case with the expiration of each subsequent day only aggravates the negative consequences of violating the requirements of the law and creates additional difficulties in achieving the final goals of legal proceedings.

4. The Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation has repeatedly drawn the attention of judges to the need to comply with the deadlines for consideration of cases, to increase their personal responsibility for fulfilling the relevant requirements of the law. In particular, in paragraph 2 of Resolution No. 52 of December 27, 2007 (as amended and supplemented) “On the time limits for consideration by the courts of the Russian Federation of criminal, civil cases and cases of administrative offenses,” he drew attention to the fact that for rude or systematic violation by a judge of the procedural law, resulting in an unjustified violation of the deadlines for resolving the case and significantly infringing on the rights and legitimate interests of participants in the trial, taking into account the specific circumstances, a disciplinary sanction may be imposed, up to the termination of the judge’s powers.

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BVS RF. 2008. N 2.

Consultations and comments from lawyers on Article 154 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation

If you still have questions regarding Article 154 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation and you want to be sure of the relevance of the information provided, you can consult the lawyers of our website.

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The general time frame for consideration of civil cases is determined by law to be two months from the date of receipt statement of claim. But for justices of the peace this period is only a month. But the period is calculated only from the moment the case is accepted for proceedings. For Supreme Court If it considers the case as a court of first instance, this period is three months. To challenge the decision of government officials - two months and one week.

Review deadlines are not fixed. During the court hearing, depending on the type of claim or the circumstances of the case requiring an expedited decision, these deadlines may be reviewed and changed. The consideration period also includes preparing the case for trial. The legislation defines general, reduced and special terms for the consideration of civil cases.

In practice, everything happens a little differently. The period may be increased if during the proceedings there are grounds for changing the cause of action, the subject of the claim or the amount of the claim increases. In this case, the period is calculated anew from the moment the court accepts these changes. The consideration of the case begins from the beginning if:

  • There is a need to involve co-defendants in cases where it is impossible to resolve the dispute without their participation;
  • The inappropriate defendant is replaced;
  • A third party enters into the matter and makes independent claims,
  • In cases where a counterclaim is filed.

The deadlines may be extended by the judge when considering complex cases, the resolution of which requires lengthy examinations, sending letters rogatory, or obtaining documents from citizens or from institutions that are located outside the court district, another region, or even in another state.

If it happens that the case lay in court for a long time without consideration, or was delayed for some reason, interested parties have the right to apply to expedite the consideration. This application is considered by the chairman of the court, and based on the results of the consideration, he makes a reasoned decision to accept or refuse the application. If application A is satisfied, then the determination indicates exactly what actions and who is obliged to take in order for the case to be considered as quickly as possible.

There are also shortened deadlines for consideration of certain categories of civil cases. For example, cases of reinstatement at work or collection of alimony payments are considered by the court within a month. And only five days are allotted for the consideration of the case of temporary placement of a foreigner in the order of readmission. The same period is given to the magistrate to issue court order, if the application was received specifically for its issuance. In addition, such applications are considered by a magistrate without judicial trial at all.

Cases related to the protection of voters' rights also require consideration within a shortened time frame. During elections, voting or election campaigns, cases of violation of the right to free expression of will are considered within five days, but no later than the day preceding the day on which voting takes place.

Time limits set by the court must be applied taking into account their reasonableness. The reasonableness of the period means that the case will be considered taking into account the time of its receipt in court, the study of materials and evidence, verification of information, and the time required for trial and decision-making.

Amendments adopted not so long ago in the Civil Code of the Russian Federation regarding the timing of consideration of civil cases have not changed the situation much for those who are forced to go to court to protect their rights. It is still possible for the case to be delayed on completely legal grounds.