Review of Court Judgements on Newly Discovered Circumstances and Access to Court
Review of Court Judgements on Newly Discovered Circumstances and Access to Court

Summary/Abstract: The article addresses the issue of identifying the persons entitled to initiate reviews of court decisions on newly discovered circumstances, as it has emerged in the Supreme Court practice. The author employs methods of analysis and synthesis, as well as systemic-structural and logical-legal methods, in addition to teleological and evolutionary interpretations of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) practice. The article is structured in two parts. The first part analyzes the approaches developed in the practice of the European Court of Human Rights regarding the content of the right of access to court (Article 6, paragraph 1 of the ECHR). It concludes that this right is not absolute and may be subject to restrictions that comply with the principle of proportionality. This right encompasses not only the right to lodge a claim, but also the ability to initiate a review of a court decision. The ECHR recognizes appeal review as the minimum standard, while other types of review (cassation, review of court decisions on newly discovered or exceptional circumstances) are extraordinary, and therefore may be subject to more stringent restrictions. Legitimate restrictions include, for example, time limits for appeals, requirements for the content and form of such appeals, and a limited scope of individuals who are entitled to initiate the relevant type of review. The second part of the article examines the legitimacy of restricting access to court within the review of court decisions on newly discovered circumstances for persons who did not participate in the case, but whose rights, freedoms, interests, and/or obligations were determined by the court. It is argued that excluding these individuals from those who can initiate the relevant review is proportionate. However, where such persons have joined the proceedings at the appeal or cassation stage, acquiring participant status in the case, they should also be granted the right to initiate a review based on newly discovered circumstances.

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