Distinguishing the concept of transparency from the related categories of publicity and openness in civil proceedings

Abstract

Ensuring the transparency of the judiciary is one of the key conditions for strengthening public trust in justice and the effective implementation of the right to a fair trial in modern conditions of the development of the legal system. Objective. The aim of the study is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between the concepts of transparency, publicity and openness as the foundations of civil proceedings, and their theoretical and legal distinctions, taking into account contemporary academic approaches and regulatory frameworks. Particular attention is paid to defining the content of these categories and establishing their place within the system of principles of justice.

The study employs general scientific and specialized legal methods, in particular the formal-legal, systemic-structural, comparative-legal and generalization methods. The application of these methods enabled an analysis of academic approaches to understanding the relevant categories, an examination of their legal enshrinement, and a determination of the characteristics of their practical implementation.

The study established that transparency, publicity and openness are interrelated but not identical legal categories. It has been substantiated that transparency is integrative, encompassing both the procedural aspect related to the publicity of court proceedings and the informational aspect ensuring access to information about the court’s activities. It has been determined that publicity serves as a procedural guarantee of open court proceedings, whilst openness characterizes the accessibility of information about judicial activities. The normative enshrinement of these principles in national legislation has been examined, and their compliance with international standards has been established. Particular attention has been paid to the impact of digitalization on broadening the scope of openness and enhancing transparency in judicial proceedings.

The expediency of distinguishing between the concepts under study as a relationship between the general and the particular has been demonstrated, with transparency acting as the generalizing category and publicity and openness as its constituent elements. The author has formulated a definition of transparency in civil proceedings as a comprehensive legal characteristic that combines the procedural and informational aspects of the judiciary's functioning. The results obtained can be used to improve legal regulation and to develop a unified approach to understanding the principles of judicial proceedings.