Historical Experience of Judicial Review of Cases of Illegal Logging in the Russian Empire in the First Half of the 19th Century

Relevance. Currently, Russia pays special attention to the study of the country's history. In this regard, the study of certain aspects of the history of society and the state, including the peculiarities of the work of the judicial system in the field of bringing those responsible to justice for violating legal norms in the field of forest protection in the pre-reform period, becomes relevant. 
The Purpose. To study the features of legal proceedings in the Russian Empire in cases of illegal logging in the 19th century, which influenced the transformation of the judicial system during the reforms of Alexander II. 
Objectives. The following tasks are solved within the framework of the article: identify the procedural norms that were in force during the judicial review of cases of illegal logging in the Russian Empire in the pre-reform period; confirm with examples the procedure for considering cases of illegal logging in court; justify the need for transformation of procedural rules governing legal proceedings in cases of illegal logging. 
Methodology. When conducting the research, the author relied on a dialectical approach, using methods such as analysis of legal documents and business correspondence, and comparison of historical documents. 
Results. The duration of consideration by the courts of cases of unauthorized logging in state-owned, incoming and disputed forests with the treasury exceeded all reasonable periods (sometimes tens of years). Violators of forest protection legislation, in the absence of a clear response from the authorities, did not stop illegal logging. 
Conclusion. The peculiarities of legal proceedings in cases of illegal logging in the pre-reform period were bureaucracy, irresponsibility, red tape and, as a consequence, the low efficiency of the judicial system in protecting forests. 

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