The dissertation is dedicated to the study of Hitler's occupation policy, which was carried out on the territory of the Reich Commissariat "Ukraine" and the military occupation zone in 1941 - 1944. The work is grounded in the analysis of original archival sources, most of which were first introduced into scientific circulation. The author conducted a comprehensive study of the judicial institutions, advocacy and notary functioning in the Reich Commissariat "Ukraine" and the military occupation zone in 1941 – 1944 based on a systematic analysis of a wide range of archival sources, published documents, national and foreign scientific literature. Such study is an original work and is held for the first time in thedissertation.
Historiographical review confirms the insufficient research of the stated problem in modern national and foreign studies. This simplifies the vision of Ukrainian society’s life on the occupied territories. Much attention is paid to the theoretical and methodological research of the courts, advocacy and notary functioning as one of the occupational administration’s attempts to regulate the local population legal relations.
The dissertation defines the measures taken by the German authorities to introduce "a new order" in Ukraine, identifies the system of bodies and institutions authorized to implement the goals and objectives of the Nazi occupation policy in the Reich Commissariat "Ukraine" and the military occupation zone, determines the authorities empowered to implement legal forms and means of local people’s legitimate behavior during the Nazi occupation regime. At the times of the German occupation authorities’ establishment a part of the responsibilities in the legal sphere were transferred to local authorities. Another way to deal with the situation was to delegate these functions to the legal departments of local authorities.
The normative and legal base used to regulate criminal, civil and family legal relations of the local population is characterized in the paper. The work also outlines the basic regularities of creation and practical activities of local civil and criminal courts. The Reich Commissariat "Ukraine" created regulations of the codified level, while the administration of the military occupation zone issued separate documents regulating the spheres of criminal, civil and family law.
The author reveals the creation and functioning peculiarities of court, notary and advocacy institutions. At the beginning of the occupation in 1941 the military administration created judicial bodies, which, after the transfer of particular territories to Reich Commissariat "Ukraine", were transformed into civil and criminal courts. In the military occupation zone there were created conflict and conciliation chambers, judicial commissions and magistrates' courts to hear the civil and criminal cases as well. Advocacy and notary institutions functioned in both occupation zones.
The paper also determines the possibilities of the local population’s civil rights and interest’s judicial protection. The local population in the Reich Commissariat "Ukraine" and the military occupation zone made the use of the opportunity to protect judicially their civil rights and interests. Some of the disputes concerned contractual obligations breaches, protection of the rights and interests of minors, inheritance, division of property between the former spouses, return of property, collection of debts and termination of lease agreements.
Local criminal courts dealt with misdemeanors and crimes, the most common of which were committed against a human life and health, slanders, insults to honor and dignity, theft and hooliganism.
German occupation administrators did not intend to cooperate with former Soviet judges. Therefore, it was decided to involve into the judiciary bodies the people with legal education and experience in the relevant structures of the former Russian Empire. The people who often held similar positions in the pre-war period were allowed to work in advocacy and notary institutions. The main requirement to them was their loyalty to the new occupational authorities.
After the Soviet power restoration, the procedure of evaluating the personal professional activities of legal institutions’ employees began. Soviet special services paid particular attention to the judges. At the same time the lawyers and notaries were arrested only for detecting the signs of other crimes in their actions. With few exceptions, those convicted by the Soviet judiciary system were not rehabilitated in independent Ukraine.
