• Introduction
• Jurisdiction in Constitutional Matters
• General Courts in Civil and Criminal Matters
• Administrative Jurisdiction
• Special Courts
• Prosecutors
• Advocates and Legal Aid
• Enforcement of Judgements
• System of Sanctions
• Supervision of the Administration of Justice

Introduction

The Finnish Constitution guarantees everyone the right to have his case heard appropriately and without undue delay by a court or other public authority. Everyone also has the right to have a decision affecting his rights and duties reviewed by a court or other judicial body.

In addition the Constitution contains the basic provision on fair trial and good governance. The main guarantees of these are the publicity of proceedings, the right to be heard, the right to receive a decision containing the grounds, and the right to appeal against the decision.

The independence of the judiciary is constitutionally guaranteed. The courts are under the sole obligation to apply the law in force.

The professional judges must have a higher university degree in law. They are appointed by the President of the Republic. A judge cannot be dismissed except by court order, e.g. if he has been convicted for an offence. The courts of first instance also have some locally elected lay judges. 

Jurisdiction in Constitutional Matters

In Finland, the constitutionality of laws is examined in advance. This mainly takes place in Parliament, and especially in its Constitutional Law Committee. The goal of this parliamentary control is to prevent in advance that laws which are in conflict with the Constitution are enacted in the ordinary legislative procedure.

No constitutional court exists in Finland, but the courts and other authorities are under an obligation to interpret legislation in such a way as to adhere to the Constitution and to respect human rights. According to the Constitution, the courts should give preference to the Constitution when they decide a case if the application of an act would be in manifest conflict with the Constitution.

General Courts in Civil and Criminal Matters

District Courts

Finland is divided into a number of judicial districts, each with a District Court (käräjäoikeus). The districts vary greatly in size, both in terms of population and of area. A District Court is made up of a Chief Judge (laamanni) and a number of other professional judges (käräjätuomari). 

In civil cases the proceedings start with the pre-trial phase of the procedure, after which the case is adjourned to the main hearing.  The case also can be resolved already in the course of the partly written and partly oral pre-trial procedure.

Also in criminal procedure the principles of orality, directness and concentration of the trial are stressed. The main hearing is divided into the opening statements of the parties, the presentation of evidence and the conclusions.

The rights of the accused are respected as stated in the European Convention of Human Rights. In Finland the victim has the right to claim damages from the accused in connection with the criminal proceedings and it is the public prosecutor´s duty in certain situations to present the claim for damages on behalf of the victim.     

In ordinary civil cases the court consists of three professional judges. One single judge, however, presides over the pre-trial procedure of a civil case. In criminal cases (and in some cases concerning family law) the court is composed of one presiding professional judge and three lay members (volunteers elected by the municipal councils). Minor cases are tried by one judge alone.

The greatest volume of cases dealt with by the district courts concern petitionary matters. These include e.g. divorce, registration of titles and mortgages over real property, bankruptcies and the adjustment of the debts of private individuals. Such matters are normally decided in chambers without a hearing being held.

Courts of Appeal

The second instance in an ordinary case is the Court of Appeal (hovioikeus).
These courts hear civil and criminal appeals.

All decisions by the District Courts may be appealed to the Court of Appeal. The parties have a right to refer both questions of fact and questions of law.

In the Courts of Appeal the cases are heard by three judges. The Court of Appeal first carries out a screening procedure, where it is determined if the matter is to be taken up for further consideration.  If the Court of Appeal considers that the decision has been correct already in the district court, the appeal will not be entertained.

The appeal procedure is similar in both civil and criminal cases. After preliminary preparation the case can be resolved either after hearing or in written procedure. The Courts of Appeal have to arrange an oral hearing if the evidence of the case has to be evaluated again or when a party so requests unless the appeal is e.g. clearly without merit.

The Supreme Court

The third and final instance is the Supreme Court (korkein oikeus), which has its seat in Helsinki. Its most important task is to establish precedents, thus giving guidelines to the lower courts on the application of the law.

The Supreme Court hears both civil and criminal appeals, but cases are admitted only under certain conditions.

The Supreme Court may grant a leave to appeal in cases in which a precedent is necessary for the correct application of the law, a serious error has been committed in the proceedings before a lower court or another special reason exists in law.

Normally two members decide whether leave should be granted. If leave is granted, the case is decided in a composition of five members. If the matter is important in principle and has far-reaching consequences, it is decided in a plenary session or in a reinforced composition of eleven members.

Usually, the cases are decided on the basis of written materials; the Supreme Court may, however, also conduct oral hearings and inspections.

Administrative Jurisdiction

A general right of administrative appeal exists in Finland. This right can only be restricted with a specific legislative provision to that effect. The administrative courts hear appeals of private individuals and corporate bodies against the acts of the authorities. In certain cases the State and municipal authorities also have the right of appeal.

An appeal is usually first heard by a regional Administrative Court (hallinto-oikeus). The administrative courts hear tax, municipal, construction, social welfare, health care and alien cases as well as other administrative cases. In certain of these the appeal must be preceded by a complaint to a separate lower appellate body.

The administrative court consists of three judges. The procedure is mainly written. The administrative courts also conduct oral hearings. They have to be held whenever it is necessary for the resolution of the case or when a party so requests.

The Supreme Administrative Court (korkein hallinto-oikeus) finally decides the legality of the acts of the authorities. The bulk of its case-load consists of appeals against the decisions of the Administrative Courts.

Usually no leave to appeal is required. The main exception to this rule is an appeal against a decision in a tax case, for which leave is required. The Supreme Administrative Court itself grants the leave. The cases are heard by five judges. The Supreme Administrative Court may conduct also inspections or oral hearings.

In addition to its purely judicial tasks, the Supreme Administrative Court supervises the lower judicial authorities in the field of administrative law.

Special Courts

The High Court of Impeachment (valtakunnanoikeus), which has been convened only a few times, hears criminal cases relating to offences in office allegedly committed by a member of the Council of State, the Chancellor of Justice, the Parliamentary Ombudsman or a member of either the Supreme Court or the Supreme Administrative Court. In such cases the prosecution is the responsibility of the Prosecutor General, the Chancellor of Justice or the Parliamentary Ombudsman.

The Market Court (markkinaoikeus) hears i.a. disputes regarding public acquisition, competition between firms and improper marketing.  Depending on the nature of the case, the rulings of the Market Court are open to appeal before the Supreme Administrative Court or the Supreme Court.

The Labour Court (työtuomioistuin)  hears disputes relating to collective agreements on employment relationships and on civil service relationships. Its decisions are not subject to appeal. Disputes relating to individual employment relationships are heard by the general courts and individual civil service relationships by the administrative courts.

The Insurance Court (vakuutusoikeus) considers certain cases falling within the field of social insurance, e.g. occupational accident insurance and pensions. Such cases are usually first heard by an appellate board, whose decisions are then subject to appeal to the Insurance Court. In certain cases related to accident insurance, the decisions of the Insurance Court are open to appeal before the Supreme Court, subject to leave by the Supreme Court.

The Prison Court (vankilaoikeus) makes decisions on the isolation of dangerous repeat offenders and orders young offenders to serve their sentence in the juvenile prison.

Prosecutors

The highest prosecuting authority in Finland is the Prosecutor General (valtakunnansyyttäjä), who is appointed by the President. As the director of the prosecution service, the Prosecutor General manages and supervises its operation and work.

The State Prosecutors (valtionsyyttäjä) who work in the Office of the Prosecutor General, appraise the evidence and decide whether charges should be brought in cases with wider national significance. The State Prosecutors have the right to act throughout the country. They are appointed by the Government.

The local prosecuting authorities are in Finland District Prosecutors (kihlakunnansyyttäjä). They are appointed by the Prosecutor General.

The prosecutors make their decisions to bring charges on the basis of preliminary investigations carried out by the police; it is their duty to appraise the available evidence and determine whether there is a prima facie case. If not, the prosecutor will make a decision not to prosecute. Prosecution may similarly be refused e.g. in cases in which the alleged offence is of minor significance.

Finland is a member of Eurojust, established by the European Union Member States in 2002 to support cooperation between prosecuting authorities and investigation of serious international crimes.

Advocates and Legal Aid

A party to proceedings before a court usually uses the services of a counsel, even though this is strictly speaking not required by law. The duties of counsel are performed by an advocate, a public legal aid attorney, or another lawyer. Public legal aid attorneys (julkinen oikeusavustaja) are employed by the State to assist people in their legal affairs.

Legal aid is there to give individuals the possibility to obtain assistance for legal matters fully or partially at the expense of the State. It is granted on the basis of the applicant's income, expenditures and wealth. When these exceed a certain amount, legal aid will not be granted. Legal aid will not be granted if the applicant has legal expenses insurance covering the matter at hand.

Legal aid can be given both in court proceedings and in other matters.
In criminal proceedings, the defendant is under certain circumstances provided with a public defender at the expense of the State, regardless of his or her financial status.

The victim of domestic violence or sexual crime may be provided with a trial counsel at the expense of the State, regardless of his or her financial status.

In Finland a crime victim can recieve compensation from the State for damages caused by the crime, for instance for costs of medical care. If the victim has received compensation from the offender or an insurance company, it will be deducted from the compensation paid by the State.

Enforcement of Judgements

In Finland the enforcement of civil judgements is the duty of the District Bailiffs (kihlakunnanvouti), who are administratively within the ambit of the Ministry of Justice.

The bailiffs have general jurisdiction to ensure compliance with obligations laid down in court judgements. In practice these most often take the form of judgement debts. If the judgement is not heeded voluntarily, it is carried out compulsorily, by way of enforcement. Due taxes and public fees, as well as certain comparable civil debts, are executable without need for a judgement.

Also criminal sanctions of a monetary nature, such as fines, are collected by way of enforcement. In addition, the enforcement authorities are charged with the carrying out of evictions, court-ordered asset seizures and court orders on child custody and right of access.

The decisions of the bailiffs are subject to appeal in a District Court.

System of Sanctions

In Finland, the punishment imposed on a convicted criminal takes the form of imprisonment, fine, fixed-sum fine or community service. Community service can be imposed instead of unconditional imprisonment for at most eight months. Community service places are offered by various non-profit public or voluntary organisations.

A special juvenile punishment can be imposed on a young person, if a fine is considered insufficient and unconditional imprisonment too severe. Juvenile punishment consists of supervision and work and an educational program.

Mediation is still an unofficial system in Finland. Successful mediation may result in a decision not to prosecute or less severe sentencing by a court. Notwithstanding mediation, serious offences are likely to be considered by a court of law.

A sentence of imprisonment is passed either for a fixed period or for life. The minimum fixed period is fourteen days and the maximum twelve years.  Under certain circumstances the sentence can be made conditional. In addition, there is an opportunity for parole after a given proportion of the sentence has been served. An offender serving a term of imprisonment for life can only be released by Presidential pardon.

The Prison Service (Vankeinhoitolaitos) enforces prison sentences and fine conversion sentences passed by the courts and takes care of the enforcement of remand imprisonment. The enforcement of community service and juvenile punishment is carried out by the Probation Service (Kriminaalihuoltolaitos). The Probation Service also sees to the supervision of conditionally sentenced young offenders and prisoners out on parole.

The Criminal Sanctions Agency (Rikosseuraamusvirasto) is in charge of the direction , administration and final enforcement of sentences.

Supervision of the Administration of Justice

The Chancellor of Justice of the Council of State (oikeuskansleri) monitors the legality of the operations of the Council of State and other authorities, as well as of other public agencies. He also monitors the activities of the members of the Finnish Bar Association. The Chancellor of Justice is appointed by the President of the Republic.

The Finnish administrative machinery is also overseen by the Parliamentary Ombudsman (eduskunnan oikeusasiamies). The duties of these senior authorities differ in practical terms only in that the overseeing of the legality of the activities of the Council of State is entrusted mainly to the Chancellor of Justice. Matters pertaining to conscripts and convicts are within the ambit of the Ombudsman. 
 The overseers of legality have no jurisdiction to alter the decisions of other authorities, nor to award damages on the basis of complaints. Their rulings are not subject to appeal.

In addition to the senior overseers of legality, there are certain specialised authorities who have similar duties in more limited fields. These include the Consumer Ombudsman, the Ombudsman for Equality, the Data Protection Ombudsman, the Ombudsman for Minorities and the Bankruptcy Ombudsman.