CHAPTER 5. JUDICIAL AUTHORITY

Article 80

1. In the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic justice shall be administered only by court.

2. Judicial authority shall be exercised by courts through constitutional, civil, administrative, criminal, and arbitration proceedings.

Judicial system in the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic shall be determined by the constitutional law according to this Constitution. It is not allowed to establish emergency courts.

3. Jurisdiction, the order of establishing and functioning courts shall be provided by this Constitution and the constitutional law.

4. The President of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic shall ensure independence of judicial power.

Budget of courts should enable them exercise their constitutional powers fully and independently; budgetary provision for organs of judicial power may not be less than that for other organs of state power in the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic. Budget of courts may not be reduced during the current fiscal year without an agreement of highest organs of judicial power of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, unless budget expenditures are cut out proportionately for all organs of state power.

Article 81

1. In the process of administering justice, judges shall be independent and subordinate only to the Constitution and law of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.

2. Any interference in the activity of judges related to administration of justice by them shall be inadmissible and shall entail responsibility according to law.

3. A court, having revealed during consideration of a case an inconsistency between a normative act of a state organ or another organ and the Constitution or law, shall take a decision according to the Constitution and law.

Article 82

Only citizens of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, who have higher education in law and job seniority in juridical speciality at least five years, may serve as a judge.

Only a citizen of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, who has higher education in law and job seniority in juridical specialty or activity in the sphere of law at least ten years, may serve as a judge of the Constitutional Court.

Article 83

1. Judges, except for judges of the Constitutional Court and justices of the peace, shall be appointed by the President on the proposal of the chairmen of the Supreme and Arbitration Courts, respectively.

Justices of the peace shall be elected by the population from among persons who meet the requirements of the first part of Article 82 of this Constitution, on the basis of universal, equal and direct suffrage by secret ballot. The term of office of justices of the peace is 5 years. The procedure for holding elections of justices of the peace is established by law.

- Part three is excluded.

- Part four is excluded.

2. The powers of a judge may be terminated or suspended in the manner and on the grounds established by the Constitution and constitutional law.

3. During the period of exercising their powers, judges may not carry out entrepreneurial and other activities, except for teaching, scientific and other creative activities.

During their term of office, judges cannot be members of political parties, public associations pursuing political goals. The performance of the duties of a judge shall be incompatible with the performance of deputy duties.

Article 84

1. A judge shall have personal immunity.

2. A judge may not be made answerable otherwise than in the order provided by law.

Article 85

1. In all courts proceedings shall be open. Hearing cases at a closed session shall be allowed only in cases stipulated by law.

2. Justice shall be administered on the basis of controversy and equality of sides in proceedings.

Article 86

1. The Constitutional Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic is the body of constitutional control in the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.

The Constitutional Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic shall guarantee the supremacy of the Constitution of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, ensure the observance of the principle of separation of powers, guarantee the responsibility of the state before the citizen and the citizen before the state.

2. The Constitutional Court consists of 6 (six) judges, including the President of the Court.

The powers of a judge of the Constitutional Court may be suspended or terminated only in accordance with the procedure established by constitutional law.

The President of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, the Supreme Council, the Congress of Judges of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic shall appoint two judges of the Constitutional Court.

3. Excluded.

4. The Chairman of the Constitutional Court shall be appointed from among the judges of the Constitutional Court in the manner prescribed by the Constitution.

Article 87

1. In terms of exercising constitutional review, the Constitutional Court shall decide on cases on conformity to the Constitution:

a) laws of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (including constitutional laws, except for laws on changing the Constitution), as well as legal acts adopted by the Supreme Council;

b) legal acts of the President of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, the Government of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, ministries, departments and other state authorities, local self-government in the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, including with regard to the need to resolve disputes about competence between bodies of various branches of state power;

c) international treaties of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic;

d) law enforcement practice;

e) the activities of elected bodies and officials of local self-government in terms of their decisions and legal acts.

2. The Constitutional Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, in terms of exercising constitutional control, shall issue conclusions:

a) excluded.

b) on the constitutionality of the signed international treaties of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic prior to their ratification or approval;

c) on the contradiction of the law of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (including the constitutional law) with the generally recognized principles and norms of international law, the rules of the ratified international treaty of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic;

d) in other cases, stipulated by this Constitution.

3. The Constitutional Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, on complaints of violation of constitutional rights and freedoms of citizens, at the request of the courts, shall verify the compliance of the law applied or to be applied in a particular case with the Constitution of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, considers complaints of citizens about violation of human and civil rights and freedoms arising in as a result of the application of the law, normative act.

4. The Constitutional Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, at the request of the President of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, the Government of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, the Supreme Council, the Plenums of the Supreme and Arbitration Courts of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, the Prosecutor of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, shall resolve constitutional control in the cases and on the issues provided for by paragraphs 1 and 2 of this article, shall give a generally binding interpretation of the Constitution and constitutional laws of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.

4-1. At the request of the Supreme Council, the Constitutional Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic shall issue an opinion on the observance of the established procedure for bringing charges against the President of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic of high treason or committing another grave, especially grave crime.

5. The Constitutional Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic shall decide exclusively questions of law.

Decisions of the Constitutional Court are adopted by a majority vote of the number of judges established by this Constitution.

Article 88

1. Decisions of the Constitutional Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic shall be definitive. Acts or their individual provisions recognized as unconstitutional according to subparagraphs "a" and "b" of paragraph 1, Article 87 of this Constitution, shall become null and void. Recognition of an international treaty of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic as unconstitutional shall lead to consequences envisioned by international law, the Constitution and law of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic. Law implementation practice recognized as unconstitutional must be stopped; respective decisions of state organs, of local self-government and officials should be revised in the order envisioned by law.

2. The order of establishing and functioning the Constitutional Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, procedures observed by it and other matters shall be regulated by the constitutional law.

Article 89

The Supreme Court of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic shall be the highest judicial organ in resolving civil, criminal, administrative and other cases falling within the competence of courts of general jurisdiction; it shall carry out judicial supervision of their activity in legal forms provided by law, and explain questions of judicial practice.

Article 90

The Court of Arbitration of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic shall be the highest judicial organ in resolving economic disputes and other cases provided by law.