Civil lawsuit in criminal proceedings: template lawsuit

The crime entails a number of legal consequences, the most important of which for the victim is the restoration of his violated right, which is achieved through civil action. Let us not forget that a crime can cause both material and moral damage.

According to Article 127 of the CPC of Ukraine, a suspect, accused, and with his consent, any other natural or legal person has the right at any stage of criminal proceedings to compensate for damage caused to the victim, territorial community, state as a result of a criminal offense.

Compensation for damage caused by a criminal offense is possible by:

voluntary compensation for damages to suspects, accused, as well as with his consent by another natural or legal person at any stage of criminal proceedings;
compensation for damages recovered by a court decision based on the results of a civil lawsuit in criminal proceedings;
compensation for damage at the expense of the State Budget of Ukraine in cases and in accordance with the procedure established by law (Article 127 of the CPC of Ukraine).

A person who has suffered property and / or moral damage as a result of a criminal offense or other socially dangerous act is entitled to compensation for such damage (Article 128 of the CPC of Ukraine, Articles 1166-1167 of the Civil Code of Ukraine).

Thus, a civil plaintiff can be both an individual and a legal entity, which is recognized as a victim in a particular criminal proceeding.

A civil lawsuit may be filed by their legal representatives to protect the interests of minors and persons declared legally incapable or partially incapable in accordance with the procedure established by law.

In its form and content, a civil lawsuit must meet the requirements for lawsuits filed in civil proceedings (Article 128 of the CPC of Ukraine, Article 175 of the CPC of Ukraine). A civil lawsuit is filed with the judicial investigation body or the court in which the criminal proceedings are pending.

A claim for compensation for damage caused by a criminal offense or other socially dangerous act may also be filed with a court of first instance in civil proceedings if the person has not filed a civil lawsuit in criminal proceedings or such a civil lawsuit has been left without consideration.

Filing a civil lawsuit in criminal proceedings has certain advantages, as the simultaneous consideration of a criminal case and a civil lawsuit provides a more complete and objective investigation of the circumstances of the case - because the amount of damage often affects the classification of crimes and punishment, civil lawsuit in criminal proceedings (Article 91 of the CPC of Ukraine).

In my opinion, filing a civil lawsuit at the stage of pre-trial investigation gives a greater advantage to the victim, but it contains certain features that should be taken into account in advance. Namely, it is important to remember that the materials of criminal proceedings do not replace the evidence that must be attached to a civil lawsuit to prove its circumstances (first of all, it is evidence of harm to a certain person and in a certain amount).

Therefore, if a civil lawsuit is to be filed with an investigator at the pre-trial stage, I consider it appropriate to do so at the end of the pre-trial investigation in order to use all the evidence gathered by the investigation to be disclosed to the parties.

According to Art. 129 of the CPC of Ukraine, passing a guilty verdict, ruling on the application of coercive measures of medical or educational nature, the court, depending on the proven grounds and size of the claim satisfies the civil claim in whole or in part or denies it. Thus, information on the satisfied civil claim in criminal proceedings will be set out in the operative part of the judgment.

Download the Civil Claim Template in Criminal Proceedings

For additional advice, contact the author of the template:

Dmitry Govor

Govor Law Office

Vinnytsia, Khmelnytske highway, 2

Tel. 0661191595, 0966057544

El. mail [email protected]

Website https://govor.ua