Comments to article 17. Exemption from the obligation to testify by the Civil Procedure Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan

1. No one is obliged to testify against himself, his spouse or close relatives, whose circle is determined by law.2. Clergymen are not required to testify against those who confided in them in confession.3. In the cases provided for in parts one and two of this Article, the said persons have the right to refuse to testify and cannot be held accountable.

1. The civil procedure legislation provides for the procedure of interrogation of witnesses. Before giving evidence, witnesses are explained their rights and obligations, they are warned by the court about criminal liability for knowingly giving false testimony and for refusing to give evidence, and a receipt is taken away by the court. In addition, the court explains to the witness the right to refuse to testify against himself, his spouse, or close relatives. A record of these court actions must necessarily be made in the minutes of the court session (Article 203 of the CPC).Criminal liability for a witness's refusal to testify is provided for in article 421 of the Criminal Code. According to the note to this article, a witness is not criminally liable for refusing to testify against himself, his spouse, or his close relatives. Clergymen are also not liable for refusing to testify against citizens who trusted them in confession. The concept of "close relatives" is given in the KBS. These include: parents, children, adoptive parents, adopted children, full and half siblings, grandparents, and grandchildren.2. Clergymen may testify about any facts known to them, however, the law grants the right not to disclose information that became known to them during the confession of believers.3. In part three of this article, it is explicitly stipulated that in these cases, persons may refuse to testify and these actions cannot be grounds for bringing to any responsibility.The law may establish other cases of exemption from the obligation to testify. Thus, according to paragraph 3 of Article 25 of the Constitutional Law "On the Judicial System and the Status of Judges of the Republic of Kazakhstan", a judge is not obliged to give any explanations on the merits of the considered or pending court cases. The secrecy of the conference room must be ensured in all cases without exception. According to paragraphs 3 and 4 of article 17 of the Law on Advocacy, it is prohibited to question a lawyer as a witness about circumstances that have become known to him in connection with the exercise of his professional duties. It is prohibited to require lawyers, their assistants and trainees, managers and employees of the presidium of the bar Association, legal consultations, law firms to provide any information related to the provision of legal assistance to a particular person, except in cases prescribed by law.

LIBRARY OF THE SUPREME COURT OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN

Astana, 2016

UDC 347 (574)  

By 63

ISBN 978-601-236-042-4

 Constitution Law Code Standard Decree Order Decision Resolution Lawyer Almaty Lawyer Legal service Legal advice Civil Criminal Administrative cases Disputes Defense Arbitration Law Company Kazakhstan Law Firm Court Cases