The Right to an Independent and Impartial Court

• Author: Murzea, C.I.
• Position: Law Department, Transilvania University of Brasov
• Pages: 161-166

Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Braşov

Series VII: Social Sciences • Law • Vol. 6 (55) No. 1 - 2013

THE RIGHT TO AN INDEPENDENT AND

IMPARTIAL COURT

Cristinel I. MURZEA1

Abstract: The right to an independent and impartial court is established

only implicitly in our national legislation, which, in article 21, paragraph (1)

from the Romanian Constitution regulates the right of any person to “go to

law” for the protection of his/her rights and of his/her legitimate interests.

The right to have access to a court of law represents an essential reference

point in the jurisprudence of the European Court regarding to the “right to a

court of law”, being a “guarantee right”.

Key words: court, right, jurisprudence, European Court, Constitution.

1 Law Department, Transilvania University of Braşov.

1. Introduction

This right is established only implicitly

in our national legislation, which, in article

21, paragraph (1) from the Romanian

Constitution regulates the right of any

person to “go to law” for the protection of

his/her rights and of his/her legitimate

interests.

Analyzing the article in the Constitution,

we are compelled to make a few

observations regarding the defining

elements of the right to go to law.

First of all, it is to keep in mind that the

text uses the word “people”, so both the

natural person and the legal one are taken

into consideration, either Romanian

citizens or foreign ones or those who are

stateless.

Here, we can refer to article 18,

paragraph (1) from the Constitution, which

specifies that foreign citizens and the

stateless ones who live in Romania enjoy

the general protection of people and assets

guaranteed by the Constitution and other

laws.

Among the protection measu res to be

found here, we find the right to go to law.

At the same time, it is necessary to point

out that the constitutional text which

regulates this right mentions that no law

can restrict exercising the right to go to

law. It follows that the right of the person

to go to law is a fundamental right,

guaranteed by the Constitution, which has

the correlative obligation of the court to

solve the claim which it has been

addressed.

This right is not especially regulated, not

even at European level, but this is an

autonomous and distinct right, established

in a Praetorian way [1], through the

founding interpretation of the provisions of

article 6, paragraph (1) from the E uropean