德国审级制度原理探析:以历史为视角

An Analysis of the Principle of German Hierarchical and Appellate Jurisdiction:From a Historical Perspective

当事人不服一审法院的判决,有权向上级法院提起上诉。若当事人仍然对第二审法院的判决表示不服,在符合一定的法定条件之下还有权向第三审法院提起上告。当事人的这种逐级上诉体系在当代法律体系中已成为一种理所当然的审级制度架构。第三审程序的功能不仅在于维护当事人对公平裁判的私人诉讼利益,同时也维护了国家对司法统一的公共利益。但从历史的视野来看,这种制度设计并非自始就有,而是一种历史演进中的产物。本文利用历史文献资料梳理德国审级制度的发展历程,旨在从其特定社会语境的描述中发掘、归纳具有普遍性、规律性的结构因素。这种关于域外法制的纵向深入研究,相信对我国正在进行中的诉讼制度改革不无启示意义。

A party unsatisfied with the judgment of the first instance court has a right to appeal it to the higher court.If such party are still dissatisfied with the judgment of the court of second instance,they may still have the right to recourse to the court of third instance if they satisfy certain statutory conditions.The current level-by-level appellate system has become a matter of course in the contemporary legal system.The third instance procedures function not only in safeguarding the parties＇ litigation interests in fair trial,but also in protecting the public interest in the unity of the judiciary.However,from a historical perspective,this conception is not to be taken for granted,and it is a product of historical evolution.In this paper,the author makes use of the historical documents to trace out the development of the German hierarchical and appellate jurisdiction system.The purpose of this article is to uncover and summarise the structural factors that have universal and regular importance from their respective social contexts.The author believes that this kind of further study on the foreign legal system could lend references to the ongoing judicial reform in China.