Constitutional Court Declares Unconstitutional Provisions Restricting Citizens’ Right to Judicial Protection in Reinstatement Cases and the Review of Court Decisions

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The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan considered applications filed by citizens challenging the constitutionality of the first and second paragraphs of paragraph 5 of Article 160 of the Labour Code and paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 455 of the Civil Procedure Code (CPC).

Background of the Cases

In the first case, the applicant was dismissed from the internal affairs bodies on the basis of the findings of an internal service investigation. The courts dismissed his claim for reinstatement on the grounds that he had failed to comply with the statutory time limit for filing a claim under the Labour Code, without taking into account the specific nature of employment relations within law enforcement agencies.

Subsequently, during criminal proceedings, the court found no evidence that the applicant had committed the disciplinary violations on which his dismissal had been based. However, the existing provisions of the Civil Procedure Code did not allow him to seek a review of the earlier court decisions refusing his reinstatement.

In the second case, the applicant also challenged the relevant provisions of the Civil Procedure Code, arguing that they restricted her constitutional right to judicial protection by allowing contradictory judicial decisions to coexist. The court refused to reopen her civil case, holding that the judgment of the Specialized Administrative Court did not constitute a legal ground for reviewing the earlier civil judgment.

Position of the Constitutional Court

Following its constitutional review, the Constitutional Court concluded that the contested provisions of the Civil Procedure Code undermine the general principle governing the review of judicial decisions based on newly discovered or new circumstances.

As a result, individuals are deprived of an effective opportunity to protect their rights in situations where a final judicial decision issued in another case disproves the factual circumstances on which an earlier judgment was based.

The Court further held that the challenged provisions of both the Labour Code and the Civil Procedure Code impose unjustified restrictions on the constitutional right to effective judicial protection.

Findings of the Constitutional Court

In its final decision, the Constitutional Court declared the contested provisions of the Labour Code and the Civil Procedure Code inconsistent with the Constitution.

The Court further ruled that, until the labour legislation is amended, disputes concerning reinstatement brought by participants in employment relations who are entitled to apply directly to the courts without first referring the dispute to a conciliation commission shall be subject to a one-year limitation period for filing a claim.

In addition, until the relevant legislative amendments are adopted, courts reviewing civil cases on the basis of newly discovered or new circumstances shall apply paragraph 1 of Article 455 of the Civil Procedure Code, according to which the grounds for review include previously unknown legal facts that are of material significance for the proper resolution of the earlier case.

The full text of the Constitutional Court’s Regulatory Resolution is available at: https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/ksrk/documents/details/1026176?lang=ru