Familiarization of the victim with the materials of the criminal case under the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, Article 216

1. At the request of the victim, civil plaintiff, civil defendant and their representatives, the investigator familiarizes these persons with the materials of the criminal case in whole or in part, with the exception of the documents specified in part two of Article 317.4 of this Code. The civil plaintiff, civil defendant or their representatives familiarize themselves with the materials of the criminal case in the part that relates to the civil claim.

2. Familiarization is carried out in the manner established by Articles 217 and 218 of this Code.

What is the article of the Code of Criminal Procedure about?

Many will agree that a criminal trial is not a very pleasant experience. Even less pleasant is communicating with employees of local courts and other regulatory authorities. Due to ignorance of their rights, many cannot exercise their legal rights, for example, to familiarize themselves with the materials of a criminal case. The materials of each proceeding contain a number of documents that were provided by different parties to the case.

The composition includes such documents as:

• lawsuit;
• proof;
• statements;
• petitions, etc.

Sometimes the “folder” of documents contains interim court decisions, requests from judges in the case, requests from the investigator, as well as expert opinions and protocols drawn up during the investigative process.

When considering civil, administrative and criminal disputes, the case materials can be reviewed by: the plaintiff, the defendant, as well as third parties. The legislator does not limit the number of familiarizations. A request for review can be submitted at least after each addition. Also, the law does not establish specific time limits for reviewing the papers.

There are no grounds for refusal by officials to provide the file for review by people participating in the process. An official who has the case materials in hand cannot give a refusal, citing illness, vacation or employment.

It will be interesting to know that familiarization of the victim with the materials of the criminal case or another participant in the process does not oblige him to submit a written petition. He can study papers even by oral presentation. During the process of reviewing documents, a person can make copies, photograph materials, and also make extracts. The law does not prohibit this. If an investigator or other person prohibits such manipulations, he is violating your constitutional rights.

The right of the victim to familiarize himself with the materials of the criminal case and the rights of other participants in the proceedings are reflected in detail in Article 216 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

Basic provisions

Many people do not know whether the victim has the right to get acquainted with the materials of the criminal case; accordingly, being lost in conjecture, they miss the opportunity to fully prepare for the court hearing and defend their interests to the fullest. A person who has studied the case materials will be able to present evidence in his defense at the trial, refuting the arguments of his opponents, and will also be able to express his opinion on the papers provided by the other party.

The procedure for familiarizing the accused and his defense attorney with the materials of the criminal case under the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, Article 217

In order to familiarize yourself with the procedural papers, you must submit a petition to the investigator. The list of persons who have the right to review is determined individually for each case. If the investigator for some reason refuses to provide the papers, the appeal can be sent to the prosecutor.

It is important to note that the accused has the right to familiarize himself with the full amount of information contained in the case file, but the victim is not always provided with the full amount of documents. The volume of documents presented to the victim for review is again determined by the investigator.

The civil plaintiff and defendant may familiarize themselves with the materials of the proceedings only in that part that relates to their civil claim. All requests for review sent to the investigator are recorded. A protocol of familiarization with the materials of the victim’s criminal case is drawn up and, ultimately, it is filed with the rest of the materials.

Request for familiarization with procedural papers

Familiarization with the case materials is a very important and necessary procedure, but in most cases it is impossible without a completed petition.

The document can be drawn up according to the approved template:

1. The name of the court that is considering the case or the name of the investigator conducting the proceedings.
2. Your personal details and address.
3. Name of the case you want to study (number).
4. Title of the document (centered on the page).
5. The main text of the application, where in free form they indicate the desire to study the materials.
6. Date of application and signature.

In your application, you can also indicate a request that you be given a date and time for review in advance; accordingly, indicate your telephone number or email. It is recommended to apply not only for review, but also to indicate a request to make copies of the case materials, as this will simplify the work on the information and, if you do not have time to read something in the office, you can continue studying at home.

Taking photographs and making copies also serves as a guarantee that the papers have not been changed during production and nothing new has been added. You can send your application by regular mail, electronic mail, courier, or bring it in person.

Contents of the petition for familiarization with the materials of the criminal case

The request to familiarize yourself with the case materials does not have a form strictly regulated by law. Written by hand, following the structure of the document:

Comments on Article 216 of the Code of Criminal Procedure

Familiarization with procedural papers occurs exclusively on the premises of the court or other regulatory body. Handing out documents is strictly prohibited. Even the familiarization can be carried out under the close supervision of an office worker or investigator. Such stricter rules are conditioned by the exclusion of the fact of substitution of documents or their destruction. The fact of issuing papers for examination is recorded by court staff not only in the protocol, but also in a special journal for issuing court cases.

You can get acquainted with the case throughout the working day. After review or at the end of the working day, the case is given back to the office employee, about which a corresponding note is made.

The case materials are issued not only to the participants in the process for review; the following may request papers:

Terms of preliminary investigation and procedure for their extension

• a prosecutor who has the right to participate in the consideration of the case;
• a lawyer who participates in the consideration of the case;
• other participants in criminal, administrative and civil proceedings, as well as persons who did not participate in the process, but it affects their interests and rights.

The victim and the accused may become familiar with the case upon oral request. The prosecutor does not need to submit a petition; he only needs to present his official identification, the data from which is entered into the protocol. A lawyer who has expressed a desire for acquaintance is required to present a document confirming his authority in a specific case.

Third parties must submit a written request, as well as present identification and a power of attorney of the representative. Persons who do not participate in the procedure and do not have a corresponding official position are required to submit a petition with a resolution of the chairman of the court.

In what cases is this document needed?

When investigating and familiarizing yourself with the materials of a crime, a petition from interested parties is required. An exception to the rules is in procedural cases when the inquiry officer or investigator has an obligation established by law to familiarize a specific person with the materials. For example, the accused and the victim are required to see the resolution that is issued for the purpose of ordering a special investigation into the case. At the end of it, they will learn the expert's opinion.

After completion of the preliminary investigation, the case is transferred to the court. But before that, they must be shown to the defense and the accused person. In this situation, an application from them is not necessary.

IMPORTANT: if a criminal case is suspended or terminated, the law does not oblige investigators and interrogators to acquaint the defense and the accused with its materials.

A criminal case requires the parties concerned to possess the facts and have an accurate knowledge of its circumstances. Therefore, participants have a need to document the facts.

What does judicial practice show under this article?

Unfortunately, it is people’s ignorance of their legal rights that allows attackers to avoid punishment. Familiarization with the procedural papers is a kind of guarantee of compliance with your rights at any stage of the criminal process and trial.

An example of the need for familiarization is a theft situation. The victim in the Ivanov case was summoned to the investigator to familiarize himself with the papers. In the process of studying the case, the victim identified a number of inconsistencies. His signature was forged on the protocol of the inspection of the burglarized premises, and someone else’s signature was also on the protocol of the interrogation of his wife. The protocol, as the victim recalled, was drawn up without his presence at all.

The fact that the criminal was detained was also distorted, the dates and times in the reports did not match, and the case itself was not filed and the pages were not numbered. The victim reported the inconsistencies to the investigator, but he did not react. The victim made copies of all documents and wrote a statement to the prosecutor's office and the investigative committee. After which the authorized bodies began an internal investigation and found that the investigator had thus assisted the criminal and helped him avoid punishment. The state compensated the victim for the damage, and the thief and the investigator were prosecuted.

What decisions are most often made under Article 216 of the Code of Criminal Procedure?

The investigator and office workers must always give permission to familiarize themselves with procedural papers. There are no grounds for legal refusal. If the investigator avoids demands to show papers, you can complain to management about him. If inconsistencies are identified, it is imperative to file a complaint with the Investigative Committee or the prosecutor's office. Refusal to submit papers, as well as obvious shortcomings (lack of numbering and filing) already indicate that the case is being falsified; this cannot be allowed.

Sometimes third parties involved in the process may experience problems in issuing production materials. Regarding them, this is possible, since the investigation is secret, and it is impossible to allow strangers to study the production. They will be allowed to examine the papers, but only after the resolution of the judge or his secretary on the petition.

What do you need to know when reading the papers?

The legislator does not establish a framework for familiarization with the case, but often unscrupulous lawyers and defendants take advantage of this opportunity, deliberately delaying the process. If such a situation occurs, the investigator has the right to set a time frame for studying the papers. After the case is closed and a decision has already been made by the judge, you can study the case at any convenient time without any restrictions. During the pre-trial investigation, third parties may be denied the right to examine papers. At a certain stage of the proceedings, only the main participants in the procedure have the right to get acquainted with the protocols and evidence.

Until recently, minors who were placed under parental supervision were prohibited from studying materials. The amendment allows for the study of documents by a minor during the period of educational punishment (the study is not limited to a time frame), but only in the presence of a lawyer.

It is not only allowed to familiarize yourself with the procedural papers, it must be done. First of all, this is necessary to determine the legal connection between specific events of the incident, for a more detailed study of the evidence base, and in general, in order to find inconsistencies in the documents compiled.

If you take part in criminal proceedings on your own, or want an experienced lawyer to join you at one of the stages, all work must begin with familiarization with the case materials.

How to prepare an application?

Defender

The lawyer acts on behalf of the client; with his permission, he gets acquainted with the materials, but first draws up a petition. The goal of the defender is to protect the rights and interests of the ward. The lawyer confirms the authority of the defense attorney to the investigator, otherwise access to the information will be denied.

The structure of his petition contains the following points:

1. Information about the place of application.
2. Information about the lawyer, the grounds for representation.
3. Materials to review.
4. Order data.

Accused

He has the right to get acquainted with the materials of the case that have been collected against him. The petition header in this situation will look different than in the case of a lawyer. Changes are being made to the main text of the document. The accused points to the protocols and testimony, his interrogations.

Victim

Art. 216 indicates that the victim has the right to be aware of the data that forms the basis of the criminal case. The header of the document is filled out according to the general template with the data of the person to whom it is addressed. The list of documents that the victim would like to see is included in the petition.

What case materials are not subject to disclosure?

According to Art. 161 of the law, information from the preliminary investigation is not subject to disclosure. The exception is cases when representatives of law enforcement agencies or the prosecutor allow the publication of information that forms the basis of the preliminary investigation. But only to the extent that they consider acceptable and if the publication does not contradict the rights of the participants. If the data that is subject to disclosure concerns personal life, disclosure occurs only with the approval of the participants in the criminal case.

Representatives of law enforcement agencies warn participants in a criminal case, including the lawyer in the trial, that it is unacceptable to disclose information that has become known to them during the investigation. A subscription to this effect is required under Art. 161, part 2. If information becomes known to third parties due to the guilt of the officials who disclosed it, criminal liability is provided.

Information that is not subject to publication includes not only the materials of the criminal case, but also the facts of procedural and investigative actions, their order and content.