Judicial System Of Sweden
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The judicial system of Sweden consists of the
law of Sweden The law of Sweden is a civil law system, whose essence is manifested in its dependence on statutory law. Sweden's civil law tradition, as in the rest of Europe, is founded upon Roman law as codified in the ''Corpus Juris Civilis'', but as develo ...
and a number of
government agencies A government agency or state agency, sometimes an appointed commission, is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government (bureaucracy) that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, ...
tasked with upholding security and rule of law within the country. The activities of these agencies include
police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...
and
law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of the government or other social institutions who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by investigating, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms gove ...
,
prosecution A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in Civil law (legal system), civil law. The prosecution is the ...
,
court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...
s, and
prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where Prisoner, people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state ...
s and other correctional services.


Courts

The courts are divided into two parallel and separate systems: The general courts () for criminal and civil cases, and general administrative courts () for cases relating to disputes between private persons and the authorities. Each of these systems has three levels.
Leave to appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...
can be required for a review at the second and third level. There are also special courts and tribunals that hear specific cases.


General courts

The general courts deal with criminal cases, like an act defined in the Swedish Penal Code or in another law, for which a sanction is prescribed (e.g. theft or robbery). The general courts also handle some civil law disputes, for example, disputes over the contents of a business agreement or cases relating to
family law Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations. Overview Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include: * Marriag ...
, and a number of other non-contentious matters; such as adoption and appointment of
legal guardian A legal guardian is a person who has been appointed by a court or otherwise has the legal authority (and the corresponding duty) to make decisions relevant to the personal and property interests of another person who is deemed incompetent, ca ...
s. Proceedings are generally open to the public, but access can be restricted for example in cases about sexual offences.


General administrative courts

The general administrative courts handle numerous types of cases relating to disputes between private persons and the authorities. Over 500 different kinds of cases are assigned to the general administrative courts, like appeals against decisions made by the
Swedish Tax Agency The Swedish Tax Agency () is a government agencies in Sweden, government agency in Sweden responsible for national tax collection and administering the Population registration in Sweden, population registration. The agency was formed on 1 January ...
or the
Swedish Social Insurance Agency The Swedish Social Insurance Agency (, ) is a government agency that administers social insurance in Sweden. Responsibilities Among other the agency is responsible for administering the following benefits. * Immigrant support and allowances ( ...
.


Special courts

There are also a number of special courts, which will hear a narrower set of cases, as set down by legislation. These special courts has a narrow jurisdiction as defined by special laws. For example, the law about Land and Environmental courts (2010:921), the law Plan and Building act (2010:900) or the Foreign law or the Law of Foreigners (2005:716). Some of these courts are operated as divisions within courts of the general or general administrative courts. The special courts usually determine cases at the lowest level of the court system or at the first appeal level of the court system. * Land and environmental courts (''mark- och miljödomstolar''): five district courts and one court of appeals,
Svea hovrätt Svea Court of Appeal (), located in Stockholm, is one of six appellate courts in the Swedish legal system, as well as the oldest Swedish court currently in use (the Supreme Court being constituted only in 1789, over 150 years later). It is loca ...
* Migration courts (''migrationsdomstolar''): three county administrative courts and one administrative court of appeals, in
Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
* Maritime courts: seven district courts * The Labour Court (''Arbetsdomstolen'') * The Market Court (''Marknadsdomstolen'') * The Court of Patent Appeals (''Patentbesvärsrätten'') * The Defence Intelligence Court (''Försvarsunderrättelsedomstolen'') A number of authorities are also very similar to special courts in the way they operate: * Regional rent tribunals (''hyresnämnder''), of which there are eight, within district courts. * Regional tenancy tribunals (''arrendenämnder''), of which there are eight, in the same locations as regional rent tribunals. * The tribunal for traffic injuries (''Trafikskadenämnden'') in Stockholm. If the parties don't want to accept its recommendation, the case is appealed in the district court (tingsrätt). Other insurance matters have their own tribunals: ''Ansvarsförsäkringens Personskadenämnd'', ''Ombudskostnadsnämnden'', ''Personförsäkringsnämnden'' and ''Nämnden för rättsskyddsfrågor''. * The National Board for Consumer Complaints (''Allmänna reklamationsnämnden'') provides guidance, but without imposing sanctions or any penalties, but are often honoured.


Law

Sweden has a penal law system, a civil law
system A system is a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. A system, surrounded and influenced by its open system (systems theory), environment, is described by its boundaries, str ...
and an extensive system of
administrative law Administrative law is a division of law governing the activities of government agency, executive branch agencies of government. Administrative law includes executive branch rulemaking (executive branch rules are generally referred to as "regul ...
, all with laws created by the
Parliament of Sweden The Riksdag ( , ; also or , ) is the parliament and the supreme decision-making body of the Kingdom of Sweden. Since 1971, the Riksdag has been a unicameral parliament with 349 members (), elected proportionally and serving, since 1994, f ...
. The Swedish internal law is by law subject to EU-law, international law and the
European Convention on Human Rights The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR; formally the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms) is a Supranational law, supranational convention to protect human rights and political freedoms in Europe. Draf ...
. Sweden allows for the court's free evaluation of evidence, including
hearsay Hearsay, in a legal forum, is an out-of-court statement which is being offered in court for the truth of what was asserted. In most courts, hearsay evidence is Inadmissible evidence, inadmissible (the "hearsay evidence rule") unless an exception ...
evidence. The role of
judicial review Judicial review is a process under which a government's executive, legislative, or administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. In a judicial review, a court may invalidate laws, acts, or governmental actions that are in ...
of legislation is generally not practiced by the courts; instead, the Council on Legislation gives non-binding opinions on legality. Courts are not bound by
precedent Precedent is a judicial decision that serves as an authority for courts when deciding subsequent identical or similar cases. Fundamental to common law legal systems, precedent operates under the principle of ''stare decisis'' ("to stand by thin ...
, although it can be influential.


Administration

The
Ministry of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
, a cabinet-level department in the
government of Sweden The Government of the Kingdom of Sweden () is the Cabinet (government), national cabinet of Sweden, and the country's Executive (government), executive authority. The Government consists of the Prime Minister of Sweden, Prime Minister and their ...
headed by the
Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
. It is primarily concerned with legislation concerning the judiciary. The actual day-to-day administration of the courts is the responsibility of the National Courts Administration ().


Personnel

After completing their legal education, graduates may become judges, prosecutors, or private attorneys. The government is the principal employer of
law school A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...
graduates.


Judges

Judges start their career by applying to the Ministry of Justice, who accepts about 30% of applicants. They begin their training as assistants and court clerks for about 2 years, and after candidates pass the appropriate test, are assigned to a district court. After a broad range of assignments that may last up to 8 years, the government determines appointments and promotion of judges to permanent positions. Appellate judges sometimes must wait until they have 20 years of experience before they are appointed. To be appointed as an appellate judge, a judge must have the correct balance of good academic scores, solid research papers, several years of 'notable' litigating practice at both district and appellate courts, and voluntary service as providing legal aid as well as guest faculty providing lectures at Law Schools.


Prosecutors

Swedish prosecutors are lawyers who are employed by the
Swedish Prosecution Authority The Swedish Prosecution Authority () is the principal agency in Sweden responsible for public prosecutions. It is a wholly independent organisation; not dependent on the courts or the police, and although it is organized under the Ministry of Justi ...
() and who direct the work of the police in cases concerning criminality. The prosecutor decides on whether to bring charges in a case, and appears in court. In all criminal cases, the prosecutors make decisions concerning arrests and charges on behalf of the public, and are the only public officials who can make such decisions - there is a possibility, rarely used, for private individuals to present a
private prosecution A private prosecution is a criminal proceeding initiated by an individual private citizen or private organisation (such as a prosecution association) instead of by a public prosecutor who represents the state. Private prosecutions are allowed in ...
(''enskilt åtal'') as well. (The exception is cases concerning crimes against the freedom of the press, for which the
Chancellor of Justice The Chancellor of Justice is a government official found in some northern European countries, broadly responsible for supervising the lawfulness of government actions. History In 1713, the Swedish King Charles XII, preoccupied with fighting t ...
acts as prosecutor.) In court, the prosecutor is not necessarily in an adversarial relationship to the defendant, but is under an obligation to investigate and present information which is to the advantage of the defendant as well as to his or her disadvantage. He is not a member of the bench, nor does he participate in the private deliberations of the court. The prosecutor is also the only public official who can decide to appeal public prosecution cases to courts of appeal. (As well as the defence, victims, their representatives and other parties to the case (''målsäganden'') can also appeal.) When a case has been decided by a court of appeal, the right to appeal to the
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
passes from the prosecutor of the individual case to the
Prosecutor-General of Sweden The Prosecutor-General of Sweden () is the department head for the Swedish Prosecution Authority responsible for the daily operations, the highest-ranked prosecutor in the country, and the only public prosecutor in the Supreme Court of Sweden, Supr ...
().


Chancellor of Justice

The
Chancellor of Justice The Chancellor of Justice is a government official found in some northern European countries, broadly responsible for supervising the lawfulness of government actions. History In 1713, the Swedish King Charles XII, preoccupied with fighting t ...
() is by law a direct subject of the
Government of Sweden The Government of the Kingdom of Sweden () is the Cabinet (government), national cabinet of Sweden, and the country's Executive (government), executive authority. The Government consists of the Prime Minister of Sweden, Prime Minister and their ...
, the chief legal advisor to the government and the Minister, represents Sweden in civil litigation, and also has oversight responsibility similar to that of an
ombudsman An ombudsman ( , also ) is a government employee who investigates and tries to resolve complaints, usually through recommendations (binding or not) or mediation. They are usually appointed by the government or by parliament (often with a sign ...
. The Chancellor also has duties with respect to the Freedom of the Press Act and the Fundamental Laws on Freedom of Expression, two of the four constituent pieces of the
Constitution of Sweden The Basic Laws of Sweden () are the four constitutional laws of the Kingdom of Sweden that regulate the Swedish political system, acting in a similar manner to the constitutions of most countries. These four laws are: the Instrument of Governmen ...
. The Chancellor is the sole prosecutor in cases concerning offences against the
freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic Media (communication), media, especially publication, published materials, shoul ...
and the
freedom of expression Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been r ...
.


Advocates

A lawyer becomes an or advocate when they are admitted to the
Swedish Bar Association The Swedish Bar Association () is an organisation for Swedish lawyers, including members of the Bar practicing law, under the title of '' advokat'', a title which is protected by Swedish law and reserved for the exclusive use by the members of t ...
after they graduate from
law school A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...
as a
Candidate of Law Candidate ( or ) is the name of various academic degrees, which are today mainly awarded in Scandinavia. The degree title was phased out in much of Europe through the 1999 Bologna Process, which has re-formatted academic degrees in Europe. The de ...
and have practiced law for at least 3 years. A board of the Swedish Bar Association supervises members and may disqualify an advokat from practicing law. The
Prosecutor General Public Prosecutor General or Prosecutor General may refer to: * Prosecutor General of Lithuania * Prosecutors General of Azerbaijan * Prosecutor General (Albania) * Prosecutor General of Armenia * Prosecutor General of the Republic (Brazil) * Pros ...
may request the board take action pursuant to the Code on Judicial Procedure. Compared with other countries, the number of attorneys (advocates) in private practice is small. In principle, only an are appointed as a public defender, though the advocate title is not a hardened requirement. The person assigned a "public defender" may however reject the defender and has a legal right to represent himself or herself, and may also choose their own defender, who may or may not be a member of the Swedish Bar Association.


Lay judges

In Sweden,
lay judge A lay judge, sometimes called a lay assessor (law), assessor, is a person assisting a judge in a trial. Lay judges are used in some civil law (legal system), civil law jurisdictions. Lay judges are appointed volunteers and often require some legal ...
s (, also known as lay assessors) sit alongside professional judges in district and appellate general and administrative courts. Lay judges are always in the majority in district courts, whereas the professional judges are in the majority in the appellate courts. Municipal assemblies appoint lay judges for the district courts and the
county councils A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Australia In the Australian state of New South Wales, county council (New South Wales), co ...
appoint lay judges for the appellate and county administrative courts. They are appointed for a period of 4 years, and may not refuse appointment without valid excuse such as an age of 60 years. Typically, a lay judge will serve one day per month in court during his or her tenure. In principle, any adult can become a lay judge. Lay judges must be Swedish citizens and under 70 years old. People that cannot be lay judges are judges, court officers, prosecutors, police, attorneys, and professionals engaged in judicial proceedings. In practice, lay judges in Sweden are more elderly, wealthier, and better educated. Lay judges are usually
politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
s from the local authority from which they are appointed, appointed in proportion to political party representation at the last local elections. The use of lay judges in Sweden goes back to medieval times, for instance the
Law of Uppland Law is a set of rules that are created and are law enforcement, enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a Socia ...
(1296).


Juries

Jurors () who decide cases outside the presence of judges are only used in
press Press may refer to: Media * Publisher * News media * Printing press, commonly called "the press" * Press TV, an Iranian television network Newspapers United States * ''The Press'', a former name of ''The Press-Enterprise'', Riverside, California ...
libel Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...
cases and other cases concerning offenses against
freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic Media (communication), media, especially publication, published materials, shoul ...
. () Unless the parties agree to waive a jury trial, the question of whether or not the printed material falls outside permissible limits is submitted to a jury of nine members. In these cases, six of the nine jurors must find against the defendant, and may not be overruled in cases of acquittal. The most frequently prosecuted offence under this act is
defamation Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...
, although in total eighteen offences, including high treason and espionage, are covered. Sentencing is the sole prerogative of judges. Jurors are appointed for each county by the county or municipal council for four-year terms, divided into two groups of sixteen and eight jurors, or twenty-four and twelve jurors for Stockholm County, where jurors in the second group should be or have been lay judges in the ordinary or administrative courts. Jury members must be Swedish citizens and resident in the county in which the case is being heard, they must be of sound judgement and known for their independence and integrity, and combined, they should represent a range of social groups and opinions, as well as all parts of the county. From this pool of available jurymen the court hears and excludes those with conflicts of interest in the case, after which the defendants and plaintiffs have the right to exclude a number of members, varying by county and group. The final jury is then randomly selected by drawing of lots. The
European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The court hears applications alleging that a co ...
has in a few cases determined that the outcome of such "random" selections of juries or court members may cause violations of the convention of human rights if the resulting selection of jury does not appear to be impartial or independent from the parties of the case or the matter.


Legal education

Legal education in Sweden results in a master of law degree after about 4–5 years of study. Sweden has several law schools: *
Uppsala University Uppsala University (UU) () is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially fou ...
*
Lund University Lund University () is a Public university, public research university in Sweden and one of Northern Europe's oldest universities. The university is located in the city of Lund in the Swedish province of Scania. The university was officially foun ...
*
Stockholm University Stockholm University (SU) () is a public university, public research university in Stockholm, Sweden, founded as a college in 1878, with university status since 1960. With over 33,000 students at four different faculties: law, humanities, social ...
*
University of Gothenburg The University of Gothenburg () is a List of universities in Sweden, university in Sweden's second largest city, Gothenburg. Founded in 1891, the university is the third-oldest of the current List of universities in Sweden#Public universities, S ...
*
Umeå University Umeå University (; Ume Sami language, Ume Sami: ) is a public university, public research university located in Umeå, in the mid-northern region of Sweden. The university was founded in 1965 and is the fifth oldest within Sweden's present bord ...
*
Örebro University Örebro University () is a public university in Örebro, Sweden. The university has its roots in the Örebro campus of Uppsala University, and became an independent state university college in 1977, Örebro University College (''Högskolan i Ö ...
*
Karlstad University Karlstad University ( Swedish ''Karlstads universitet'') is a state university in Karlstad, Sweden. It was originally established as the Karlstad campus of the University of Gothenburg in 1967, and this campus became an independent university c ...
The government is the principal employer of
law school A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...
graduates. Compared with other countries, the number of attorneys in private practice is small. There are about 100 law professors in Sweden.


Law enforcement

The
Ministry of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
, a cabinet-level department in the
government of Sweden The Government of the Kingdom of Sweden () is the Cabinet (government), national cabinet of Sweden, and the country's Executive (government), executive authority. The Government consists of the Prime Minister of Sweden, Prime Minister and their ...
headed by the
Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
, is primarily concerned with legislation concerning law enforcement. The main body for law enforcement in Sweden is the
Swedish Police Authority The Swedish Police Authority () is the national police, police force (''Polisen'') of Sweden. The first modern police force in Sweden was established in the mid-19th century, and the police remained in effect under Municipalities of Sweden, local ...
. The Prison and Probation Service is the government agency handling prisons in Sweden.


See also

* Häktning *
Law of Sweden The law of Sweden is a civil law system, whose essence is manifested in its dependence on statutory law. Sweden's civil law tradition, as in the rest of Europe, is founded upon Roman law as codified in the ''Corpus Juris Civilis'', but as develo ...


References

* * *


External links


Swedish National Courts Administration
*
The Swedish judicial system - A brief introduction to the Swedish judicial system, brochure revised in June 2015
{{Judiciaries of Europe
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
Law of Sweden