The system of courts of the Czech Republic may seem relatively clear and straightforward, but we still encounter a number of questions about it. This may be due to a somewhat confusing terminology, or to the powers of some courts not being clearly explained. Want to find a district court in Prague? Wondering which court is civil and which is criminal? And do you know the difference between the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court? In our article we will set everything straight.
The Czech judicial system includes different levels of courts, from district courts to the Supreme Court. At the top of this hierarchy is the Constitutional Court, which is responsible for the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms. Lower down in the system we find the regional courts, which together with the supreme courts play a role in the appeals process. A specific role is played by the municipal courts, for example in Brno or Prague, where they act as regional or district courts.
District and regional courts decide on disputes and other legal matters at first instance, with the law determining which court to turn to in the first instance. County and high courts then decide appeals against decisions of district and county courts. The Supreme Court mainly decides on appeals.
We have 88district courts in total and they form the basis of our judiciary. However, the inhabitants of our two largest cities know them by slightly different names: in the district of the city of Brno, the Municipal Court in Brno exercises the jurisdiction of the district court, and in Prague, the district courts exercise the jurisdiction of the district courts. In Prague, instead of a regional court, we speak of the Municipal Court in Prague. The Regional Court in Prague has its seat in the capital city of Prague, however, its jurisdiction is given only to the municipalities of the Central Bohemian Region. However, it does not differ from other district and regional courts in anything other than its name.
There are only twoHigh Courts in the Czech Republic and they are responsible for appeals against first instance decisions of regional courts.
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The Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority. It decides mainly on extraordinary appeals (i.e. appeals in civil proceedings and complaints for breach of law in criminal proceedings). It also has the important function of unifying Czech case law, especially when there have been divergent decisions of lower courts in a similar situation.
Outside the system of general courts is the Supreme Administrative Court, which is a judicial body specialised exclusively in the field of administrative justice. It also comes into play at election time, when it decides on electoral matters and is often mentioned in the media in connection with the dissolution of political parties and political movements. A well-known example was that of the Workers’ Party, whose activities were found to be illegal and therefore dissolved.
The Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic is a separate chapter. Although it is sometimes regarded by laymen as a kind of last resort to which one can turn whenever all else fails, this is far from being the case. The Constitutional Court is primarily supposed to protect and guarantee the constitutionality of the legal order. In relation to natural and legal persons, it can only intervene if their fundamental human rights have been violated.
Tip: If you have doubts about whether your fundamental rights have been violated, read up on what protections are available to you.
Individual cases, such as criminal or civil cases, are not dealt with by specialised courts, but within the general courts already mentioned. Some judges focus on criminal cases, others on civil or administrative cases.
For example, a single judge may decide simpler cases, especially at the level of the district courts. On the other hand, more complex cases, such as homicides or economic disputes, fall under the jurisdiction of regional or high courts.
In practice, we encounter many other court names that can confuse us. However, there is no need to look for other court buildings behind them. As a rule, it is one of the courts already mentioned. Let us take a closer look at some of the names.
TheCourt of Registry is the court designated by law to keep the commercial register in which the details of businesses are entered. It is always a regional court.
Commercial courts have been part of our judicial system in the past, but are sometimes still referred to by the public as county courts, because they deal with the bulk of disputes involving companies in the first instance.
In addition, we sometimes see the designation criminal court, civil court (or civil court). However, there are also no other specialised courts operating outside the ones already mentioned. In practice, it is the case that within a particular court some judges carry out the civil justice agenda and others deal with criminal law. The same is true of the administrative justice system in regional courts. Each court therefore has certain areas or agendas which it administers and if I approach it, for example, in criminal proceedings, I can describe it as a ‘criminal court’.
Tip: Have you been charged and prosecuted? The stakes are high and it is not worth going through the criminal process without consulting an attorney. We will conduct a careful analysis of your case and suggest a course of action for your criminal defense, in which we will vigorously enforce your rights.
Nor should we look for anything special in the term “Court of Cassation “. It is simply a court that decides on an appeal.
The only exception to the above is the Court of Arbitration. Here it is indeed a separate institution, which is established at the Chamber of Commerce of the Czech Republic. It is decided by arbitrators registered under the Arbitration Act. The Court of Arbitration is the only institution in the world authorised to arbitrate domain disputes concerning .eu domains, in addition to arbitrating disputes concerning .cz, .com, .org, .net, .biz and other domains. It is also the only Czech institution authorised to arbitrate consumer disputes.
Tip: In exceptional cases where the Czech Republic, through one of its courts or other bodies, has violated a fundamental right guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg can be approached.
District courts are the main institutions that decide most civil and criminal cases. In contrast, county courts decide more complex matters in the first instance or act as appeal courts against district court decisions.
The High Courts in Prague and Olomouc have a special status as appellate courts for regional courts.
The individual courts have their jurisdiction divided according to rules on subject matter and local jurisdiction, with the jurisdiction of the court and the judge determined by law. The subject matter jurisdiction determines which type of court (e.g. whether district or regional) will deal with cases of a certain type, in addition to whether it will be a court of first instance or a court of appeal. Local jurisdiction then determines which particular court (whether in Olomouc or Hradec Králové) will hear the case. This may be determined, for example, by the place of residence or registered office of the defendant, the place where the offence was committed, or the location of the property at issue in the proceedings. The Civil Procedure Code, the Criminal Procedure Code and certain other provisions lay down precise rules in this respect.
While the Supreme Court unifies decision-making practice and deals with extraordinary remedies such as appeals, the Constitutional Court focuses exclusively on the protection of constitutionality. If you feel that your fundamental rights have been violated, you can turn to the Constitutional Court.
If the Czech courts do not resolve your problem and you also believe that your rights under the European Convention on Human Rights have been violated, you can appeal to the European Court of Human Rights. This court, based in Strasbourg, decides on cases where a state has failed to comply with international human rights standards.
Individual judges serving on the courts can be appointed after meeting relatively demanding conditions. The basics are, of course, Czech citizenship, legal capacity and good character. A university degree in law and a judicial examination (preceded by three years of experience as a judicial candidate) are also required. They are appointed to their office by the President of the Republic.
Judges decide in some cases alone, as so-called single judges, and in other cases in panels. The rule of first instance courts is that they are decided by a single judge. Appeals are decided by the courts in panels of three judges.
Tip: The appeal is there if you disagree with the court’s decision. It is a proper remedy that either party to a civil case can use to try to overturn a court decision. Find out more about it in our article.
In a Czech court, you are guaranteed not to be asked whether the jury has reached a verdict of guilty or not guilty. However, even lay people can be represented in our system as the aforementioned jurors. They sit in the robes alongside the professional judge, the president of the chamber, in some cases at the first instance of decision-making. They attend all criminal trials before the district court and the county court when they are sitting as a court of first instance and dealing with a crime whose lower limit of punishment is five years or more. In civil court proceedings, the panel with the participation of the presiding judges decides only in proceedings before the district court in labour matters.
Only a judge (including a presiding judge) who is not disqualified from hearing the case and who is capable of making an independent, impartial and fair decision may decide individual legal cases. A judge is disqualified if, having regard to his or her relationship to the case, the parties or their representatives, there is reason to suspect that he or she is biased. In doing so, he may either inform the parties himself that he is disqualified or the superior court may decide on his disqualification on the basis of an objection by a party.
The Czech judicial system comprises district, regional, supreme, high and constitutional courts, with their jurisdiction divided according to the subject matter and local jurisdiction established by law. District courts handle most civil and criminal cases at first instance, while regional courts decide more complex cases and also act as an appellate court. The High Courts in Prague and Olomouc deal with appeals against decisions of regional courts. The Supreme Court unifies case law and decides on extraordinary appeals, while the Constitutional Court protects fundamental rights and constitutionality. The Supreme Administrative Court has a specific agenda, as the administrative judiciary.
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Ondřej is the attorney who came up with the idea of providing legal services online. He's been earning his living through legal services for more than 10 years. He especially likes to help clients who may have given up hope in solving their legal issues at work, for example with real estate transfers or copyright licenses.
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