Comparison of the Law: Find Seven Mistakes It should be noted that the plot of the series is quite rare for Russian cinema, unlike American films.
We have many “detective” films devoted to the most interesting process of preliminary investigation, in contrast to foreign ones, where the consideration of the case by the court comes to the fore.
This is due to differences in criminal proceedings in different countries.
A feature of the police inquiry in the United States is that the preliminary investigation in America is not conducted at all.
The police inquiry does not provide for a deep and comprehensive investigation of the circumstances of the case.
It begins when you receive information about the crime.
The materials collected by the police are transmitted to the prosecutor in the form of a report. Sufficient evidence indicating the involvement of a person in the commission of a crime.
An arrest or search warrant, a summons to a court are a formal act of initiating criminal prosecution.
The prosecutor draws up an indictment document, which is called a “claim” or “complaint” (at subsequent stages of the proceedings it can be replaced by an indictment), and transmits it to the judge.
The judge shall order a preliminary judicial investigation.
Extensive evidence is presented by the accused and his lawyer in court.
Thus, the main action of American justice takes place precisely within the walls of the “palace of law”, it is there that exciting fights take place between the prosecution and the defense, it is there that all documents on newly found evidence and details of the criminal case are provided, while the duration of the process can be significant.
Therefore, film scripts are focused on such stories. These are: “Lincoln for a Lawyer”, “The Devil’s Advocate”, “Primitive Fear”, “A Few Good Guys”, etc.
Unlike the United States, the administration of justice in Russia is divided into two separate processes: a preliminary investigation after the initiation of a criminal case, at the stage of which the investigator, on the basis of the collected written materials, proves the existence of a crime to the prosecutor, and a judicial investigation, in which, after the approval of the indictment, the prosecutor proves the guilt of the defendant in the courtroom.
Moreover, an important difference between the Russian proceedings is the actual repetition of these two trials and the legal significance of evidence both before the trial and in court.
That is, if a judge in Russia pronounces an acquittal, it is bad work of the investigating authorities who accused the innocent.
The duration of the hearing is given for a short time: a day, two, maximum a week with the possibility of postponing the hearings to a later date.
That's right. Amateur notes for amateurs. Back to the movies.
There are “near-court” films in which the personal life of the judge and his relationship with the world, environment, relatives come first.
These are: "Personal Case", "Law", "Judge". The fates of the defendants and the cases themselves are present in these films in insignificant doses, complementing the personality of the main character / heroes.
In the series "Your Honor" and its sequel "The Court" the situation is absolutely the opposite.
The dry clerical language, the closed space of the courtroom, the features of the new time: the absence of people's assessors and the uniform of judges, and serious passions ... 90 percent of screen time is given to the judicial investigation, and the personal life of “official” people: judges, prosecutors, lawyers, secretaries, remains as if “behind the scenes”.
These are elite sports hobbies that allow you to relieve stress (bowling, billiard), and romantic connections, and the tradition of feeding birds on the embankment with a daughter every evening and worrying about her fate.
At first, I had a desire to give a high assessment of the series, however, at the end of the viewing there was a feeling of state order on the subject, due to the large number of acquittals being demonstrated.
This is just the opposite, indirectly indicates the trouble in the justice system: there are too many “raw” cases coming to court, which (in accordance with the differences in the courts of Russia and the United States) should not be at all.
Although it is clear that the film takes place over a long period, more than a year at least, and most of the mundane episodes (theft, theft, fraud) were left behind.
The picture is of interest to students in the study of legal blunders: in addition to the already mentioned secrets of the deliberation room during sentencing, etc., this is one lawyer for three defendants (the defense requires for each defendant its lawyer), this is an attack on a judge and a lawyer (article “an encroachment on the life of a law enforcement officer”), and in the film the hooligans escaped only imprisonment for three days.
In general, the film is quite informative and very interesting. It's about being kind. Therefore, in principle, I recommend watching.