| Abstract [eng] |
The master's thesis analyses the institution of changing the accusation and identifies problems. It examines the legal regulation in Lithuania, which provides for the conditions and procedure for changing the essential facts of the offence charged and its qualification in court, as well as the meaning and content of other relevant norms of criminal procedure. It also discusses in detail the recent Lithuanian case law and takes into account the conclusions reached by Lithuanian scholars. The work begins by analysing the concept of the accusation, its content in criminal proceedings, and the right to know the accusation as an essential condition for ensuring the right of defence and a fair criminal trial. The second part of the thesis discusses the concept of the limits of the court proceedings, analyses in detail the legal regulation of changing the accusation in court, the procedure and conditions for changing the essential facts and the qualification of the offence, as well as the issue of modification of the accusation, based on the most relevant Lithuanian case law. Attention is also drawn to the recent interpretation of the Supreme Court of Lithuania, which recognises the right of the civil claimant to submit a written request for a change of plea. This interpretation is considered to be flawed, as the court does not limit itself to interpreting legal norms, but in fact creates them. The third part of the thesis analyses whether the court, by changing the facts and qualification on its own initiative, does not violate the principles enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania and the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Republic of Lithuania, and also points out that there is a divergence of case law regarding the procedural document by which the court is obliged to inform the participants in the proceedings of the change of the accusation, and that the Court of Appeal of the Republic of Lithuania and the Supreme Court of the Republic of Lithuania should therefore formulate the rules by which the courts must notify the parties to the proceedings by adopting a separate ruling. It is stated that the legislator should take into account the interpretation of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania in its resolution of 26 June 2017 and establish a legal regulation which would allow correcting the mistakes made by the court of lower instance without referring the case back to the court of first instance for review. |
