Draft Law No. 1264907-8[1]
On 18 June 2026, a draft federal law “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation and Repeal of the Federal Law ‘On Lay Judges of Commercial (‘Arbitrazh’) Courts of the Constituent Entities of the Russian Federation'” was submitted to the State Duma.
The draft law introduces comprehensive amendments to procedural legislation, affecting the provisions of the Civil Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, the Commercial (‘Arbitrazh’) Procedure Code of the Russian Federation and the Code of Administrative Court Procedure of the Russian Federation.
The draft law proposes to:
- Increase the maximum amount of uncontested claims that may be considered under writ proceedings and simplified proceedings. According to the drafters of the bill, this will expand the use of expedited procedures for resolving uncomplicated disputes, redistribute the courts’ workload and reduce the time required for adjudicating cases.
- Amend the rules governing the composition of the court in appellate and cassation instances by allowing certain categories of appeals to be considered by a single judge where uniform judicial practice has already been established. It is expected that this measure will enable collegiate panels to focus on the most complex cases and improve the efficiency of reviewing judicial acts.
- Clarify the grounds for setting aside or amending judicial acts by providing that the adoption of a judicial act without due regard to the legal positions of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, the Plenum and the Presidium of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, as well as the still effective resolutions of the Plenum of the former Supreme Commercial (‘Arbitrazh’) Court of the Russian Federation, may be regarded as an incorrect interpretation of the law.
- Abolish the institution of lay judges in commercial court proceedings due to its practical lack of demand.
- Expand the procedural powers of judicial assistants, including allowing them, where necessary, to combine their functions with those of court hearing secretaries.
- Harmonize certain provisions of procedural legislation, in particular by aligning the provisions of the Civil Procedure Code, the Commercial (‘Arbitrazh’) Procedure Code and the Code of Administrative Court Procedure concerning the court’s authority to hold a preliminary court hearing.
- Strengthen the principle of sequential appeals by requiring appellate review of judicial acts that may currently be challenged directly before a cassation court.
Practical Significance of the Proposed Amendments
If adopted, the proposed amendments may contribute to reducing the time required for resolving certain categories of disputes, further harmonizing procedural legislation and promoting greater consistency in the application of the law by the courts. At the same time, participants in court proceedings will need to take into account the new rules governing the consideration of cases by appellate and cassation courts, as well as the expanded scope of writ proceedings and simplified proceedings when developing their procedural strategy.
[1] https://sozd.duma.gov.ru/bill/1264907-8.