The institution of a preliminary hearing has been introduced in administrative courts.

The institution of a preliminary hearing has been introduced in administrative courts. This is reported in the Law No. О'РХ-1165, adopted on August 14, on amendments and additions to certain legislative acts.

According to this law, the principle of legal protection of trust was introduced into the Code of Administrative Judicial Procedure and the institution of a preliminary hearing was introduced in administrative courts.

A preliminary hearing is held in the process of preparing a case for a court hearing on a dispute over decisions, actions (inaction) of administrative bodies, self-government bodies of citizens and their officials that are contrary to the law and violate the rights and interests of individuals.

The judge conducts a preliminary hearing no later than 20 days from the date of receipt of the application by the court. During the hearing, the judge:

* clarifies the applicant's claims and the respondent's objections;

* takes measures to eliminate the shortcomings in the application;

* provides explanations to the applicant on the submission of the necessary evidence, and to the respondent on the submission of his opinion in writing;

* provides a preliminary legal assessment of the requirements in the application and the evidence in the case.

Based on the results of the preliminary hearing, a ruling is issued on dismissing the application, approving the settlement agreement, or scheduling a court hearing on the case.

Also, the presence of an official of the administrative body or his representative at the court hearing is mandatory. In case of failure to appear in court without a good reason, the hearing may be postponed and the court may impose a court fine on the official. However, if their participation does not prevent the comprehensive, complete and correct resolution of the case, the case may be considered without the participation of an official of the state body or his representative.

The law also introduced amendments aimed at simplifying the administrative management system of economic courts. Administrative courts were given the authority to consider certain administrative offenses identified during the consideration of administrative cases, including those provided for in Articles 180 and 181 of the Code of Administrative Responsibility.

In addition, in accordance with the amendments to the Law "On State Duty", the grounds for a full or partial refund of the state duty in certain cases were established. These included the dismissal of the application based on the results of the preliminary hearing.