Situation-based approach to the professional defence from prosecution: Background and significance

Abstract

Participation of a professional defender in criminal proceedings is one of the powerful procedural guarantees of efficient defense of rights of the suspect or the accused. Possibility to involve him/her in the criminal proceedings is specially stipulated in international legal documents, which provide for minimum standards ensuring individual rights within the framework of national legal systems. In its turn, enhancement of advocate's efficiency in criminal proceedings depends largely on the availability of useful tactic recommendations. One of the topical methods applied in the development of such recommendations is a situation-based approach to the professional defense in criminal cases. This article studies key aspects of the formation of the criminalistic theory on defense situations. The author studies the background of the situation-based approach to the activity of professional defender, evaluates its significance from the main standpoints: applied, theoretic and didactic