Tribunal of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

The Tribunal Book ( Mamonich Printing House , 1586)

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania - the highest court of appeal in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania .

Organized in March 1581, three years after the establishment of the crown tribunal, began to operate in 1582. It consisted of 46 deputies elected for the year from the gentry at the povet seimik, 2 from the povet (from 1588 3 more deputies from the Samgeist eldership were elected) ^[1] .

He considered cases on appeals against decisions of the rural, city and sub-maritime courts, complaints against decisions of the superintendent. In the first instance, he considered cases concerning the improper performance of elders or city officials by their duties in the execution of legal proceedings and the affairs of clergy. The rulings of the tribunal were adopted by a majority vote. Cases were decided on the basis of the statutes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , the Sejm constitutions and customary law.

Sessions of the tribunal took place first in Vilna , Troki , Novogrudok and Minsk , from 1688 one year in Vilna and Novogrudok, the second in Vilna and Minsk. From 1764 a part of the tribunal met in Vilna, a part in Novogrudok or in Minsk. From 1775 meetings were held in Vilna and in the Grodno Batorievka .

From 1726, a part of the functions of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania tribunal passed to the tribunal. It functioned until the liquidation of the Commonwealth . The archives of the tribunal are kept in Vilnius .