Law of Ukraine
The legal system of Ukraine is based on civil law, and belongs to the Romano-Germanic legal tradition. The main source of legal information is codified law. Customary law and case law are not as common, though case law is often used in support of the written law, as in many other legal systems. Historically, the Ukrainian legal system is primarily influenced by the French civil code, Roman Law, and traditional Ukrainian customary law. The new civil law books were heavily influenced by the German Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch.
The primary law making body is the Ukrainian Parliament, also referred to as the legislature. The power to make laws can be delegated to lower governments or specific organs of the State, but only for a prescribed purpose. In recent years, it has become common for the legislature to create "framework laws" and delegate the creation of detailed rules to ministers or lower governments. After laws are published in Holos Ukrayiny they come into force officially the next day.
Areas
Ukrainian law is commonly divided into Public law, Private law, and International law. These areas of the legal system are further subdivided into Civil law, Criminal law, Constitutional law, Administrative law, and International law.Civil law
regulates the everyday life of citizens and other legal entities, such as corporations. The main code of Ukrainian civil law is the Civil Code of Ukraine. It comprises provisions governing ownership, intellectual property rights, contracts, torts, obligations, inheritance law, and the definition of legal entities. The code introduces new types of business contracts into the legal practice, including factoring, franchising, rent service, and inherited contracts. Civil litigation is governed by the Civil Procedural Code of Ukraine.Criminal law
deals with the prosecution and punishment of criminal offenses. The Criminal Code of Ukraine contains the written criminal laws of Ukraine. There is no capital punishment in Ukraine. The maximum criminal punishment is life imprisonment, which can be reduced by decree of the President of Ukraine to 25 years of imprisonment, but only after 20 years of sentence service. The Parliament of Ukraine has the power of amnesty for prisoners not serving life sentences. Criminal proceedings, investigation, and court examination in criminal trials are regulated by The Criminal Procedural Code of Ukraine, which was not changed since 1962 when Ukraine was a republic of the Soviet Union till the Ukrainian Parliament passed the new Code of Criminal Procedure in April 2012.Constitutional law
frames the constitution and the structure of Ukraine. It regulates the powers of democratic institutions, the organization of elections and the division of power between central and local government. See also the article on the Constitution of Ukraine. Only the Constitutional Court of Ukraine is allowed to determine the constitutionality of laws created by the legislature.Administrative law
is the area of law that regulates the operation of the various levels of Ukrainian Government, including the process for people and legal entities to appeal decisions by the government. This code is referred to as the Administrative Code in Ukraine.International law
, also referred to as the Law of Nations, involves the application of international laws in Ukraine. International agreements, ratified by the Parliament of Ukraine, are a part of Ukrainian legislation. The Constitution of Ukraine allows the direct application of most international laws in Ukrainian courts. If an international agreement of Ukraine prescribes rules other than those set by the Law of Ukraine, the rules of that international agreement shall apply. Laws regulating jurisdiction with an international aspect, such as because parties come from different countries, are not part of international law, but form a specific branch of civil law.In September 2005, the Law of Ukraine on Private International Law was enacted. The Law sets the procedure for the regulation of private legal relations which are subject to other legal systems in addition to that of Ukraine.
Commercial law
The Commercial Code of Ukraine describes the details for compliance with the Constitution of Ukraine's clauses for commercial activity. The Code regulates the fundamentals of commercial activity, including business entities, property basis, responsibility for violations, peculiarities of legal regulation, and foreign commerce regulation.Types of corporations
- TOV - Ukrainian "Limited liability company" with obligate charter capital
- PP - Ukrainian "Limited liability company" without obligate charter capital
- TDV - Ukrainian "Additional liability company"
- PrAT, :uk:Приватне акцiонерне товариство, ПрАТ — Ukrainian "Private joint-stock company"
- PAT, Публічне акцiонерне товариство, ПАТ — Ukrainian "Public joint-stock company"
Legal liabilities
How positions are assigned
s are imposed by the Supreme Council of Ukraine. Attorneys at law are imposed by the Disciplinary Bar Commission. Notaries are imposed by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine. Public prosecutors are imposed by regional Superior officials. Policemen are imposed by Superior officials.List of acts of parliament
The Constitution of Ukraine is a supreme law of Ukraine. Laws and other legislation should be adopted on its basis and conform to it.Because Ukrainian legal system is code-based, there are a number of codified laws in the main spheres of national legislation. These include:
- Civil Code of Ukraine
- Criminal Code of Ukraine
- Family Code of Ukraine
- Labor Code of Ukraine
- Land Code of Ukraine
- Water Code of Ukraine
- Natural Resources Code of Ukraine
- Administrative Code of Ukraine
- Budget Code of Ukraine
- Forestry Code of Ukraine
- Customs Code of Ukraine
- Maritime Code of Ukraine
- Housing Code of Ukraine
- Commercial Code of Ukraine
- Air Transportation Code of Ukraine
- Tax Code of Ukraine
- Code of Civil Procedure
- Code of Criminal Procedure
- Administrative Procedure Code
- Business Arbitration Code
- Prison Code
The secondary legislation of Ukraine comprises other normative acts including decrees, resolutions, and orders issued by the President of Ukraine, Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, National Bank of Ukraine, ministries and other state agencies. They are adopted on the basis and in realization of the general provisions of laws.
Courts system
Ukraine's court system is widely regarded as corrupt. Ukrainian judges have been arrested while taking bribes.Courts in Ukraine are divided by jurisdiction including constitutional courts, general courts, economic courts, and administrative courts. There is also the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, the Supreme Court of Ukraine, Appellate Courts, and District Courts in every city, town, or raion. As well, there is the High Administrative Court of Ukraine, Local Administrative Courts in every administrative district, usually oblast, the High Commercial Court of Ukraine, Local Commercial Courts in every administrative district, usually oblast, and Military court in every Appellate Court in every regional oblast. There is also the Tertiary Court created in accordance to the law "On Tertiary Court" and registered in Ministry of Justice of Ukraine.
In order to become a judge in Ukraine, one must be 25 years old. Newly inducted judges are appointed by the President of Ukraine and serve for five years. Afterwards, judges are elected for life by the Parliament of Ukraine. Judges are not elected by the citizenry as practiced in many western countries. The judicial branch of power in Ukraine is not completely independent. To detain or arrest a judge, special permission by the Parliament of Ukraine is needed.
A judge shall not refer to political parties and trade unions, as well as participate in any political activity, have representative mandate, occupy any other paid posts, or do any other paid work except that which is scientific in nature, teaching or creative value. According to the law, a judge, while executing justice, shall follow the Constitution and the laws of Ukraine and shall ensure full, thorough and objective consideration of the cases adhering to the terms set by law. They are also obliged to take measures concerning prevention of unauthorized dissemination of the information the state and/or commercial entity considers secret or is confidential and became known to him/her in the process of doing official duties. Moreover, the Law requires a judge to refrain from the actions that defame a judge and may cause doubt that she/he is objective, as well as unprejudiced and independent.
The Law sets the system of guarantees of judge's professional activity which are necessary to approve unprejudiced and objective decisions. The Law guarantees to judges their personal immunity, secrecy of court decisions, legal protection, as well as material and social provision. The Law also prohibits any not envisaged by law interference in judge's activity concerning justice execution, detention or arrest of a judge without the consent of the Verkhovna Rada until bill of indictment concerning him/her is carried out by the court.