Acts of the Supreme Tribunal of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (in the Late 18th Century)

Abstract

The present article focuses on the acts of the Supreme Tribunal of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the late 18th century. It is claimed that the records produced by the chancery or clerk’s office of this court in the discussed period were influenced by both centuries-old traditions and reforms carried out in 1764 and subsequent years. The transfer of powers to manage the work of the chancery to Tribunal judges did not have a negative effect on its efficiency because, in practice, a quite clear division of duties among court officials was observed. One of them was responsible for recording real estate property transactions into the acts of statements as well as keeping official and private documentation (he kept the book of acts and a protocol into which he registered the acts transferred to him). The other three sworn-in clerks were required to draw up verdicts; they were responsible for the decree books (final versions) and sentencjonarz (which was referred to in the Lithuanian Tribunal as a decree protocol), in which they placed the content of rulings delivered during the proceedings of taking evidence. One more clerk kept records of the cases in which suits were presented, and the last one compiled an on-going protocol, in which he registered the so-called judicial appeals, and recorded all the major activities related to the functioning of the court and its verdicts regarding litigations addressed to it.