A person VS the state: studying access to justice

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to expand the access to justice research agenda by focusing on a person’s identity in dispute with state authority. Keeping in mind that everyone should be able to challenge governmental actions and decisions adverse to their rights or interests, in- depth research on access to justice in “a person vs the state” disputes which takes place in courts of administrative jurisdiction, is needed. The methodology of the research acknowledges the unavailability of statistical data about the litigants, and the finding of the study which shows that different groups defended their rights with varying degrees of success. Thus, an innovative approach to the analysis of the Supreme Court judgements was used. It envisions leaving aside legal issues such as statutory interpretation, and instead examines the judgements through the lens of litigant’s characteristics. The findings show that the judgements of the Administrative Court of Cassation within the Supreme Court reflect the diversity of characteristics of persons who apply to administrative courts, including categories directly named in the Constitution of Ukraine as well as not specifically mentioned in it, such as war veterans, IDPs, etc. The financial status of the litigants varies from low-income to quite wealthy, and a certain category of plaintiff is not limited to one type of specific legal problem. For example, “property owners” challenge the decisions of state agencies in a wide range of areas: taxation, urban planning, social benefits, freedom of movements, etc. However, the vast majority of “a person vs the state” disputes concern the refusal to provide some benefits rather than action against a violation of human rights and fundamental freedoms. This can be seen as a Soviet legacy to perceive the state as a welfare provider. Following the people-centered approach to access to justice is essential to reorient the court statistics from “cases and files” to litigants and their characteristics which allow to relay on data to find out whether there is any connection between some features (characteristics) of litigants and types of lawsuits.