Horizon

Rhyvuskyvaja wrote:

Wdym? You forgot your password?

Yeah

Dawnbreak RP
Worldbuilding Wednesday #16

The following excursion debates justice in Morvainne - in every aspect imaginable.

For starters, the fundamental Morvaini conception of justice is that the law exists to protect the person from power, not merely to punish criminals. The judiciary protects people from criminals, government officials, nobles, corporations and guilds, provincial governments, municipalities, and even the Crown itself. Morvainne does not necessarily establish that authority is bad, but that it must have boundaries, and because of their longevity, the Luneri have a particularly strong reason to distrust unchecked power.

There absolute is a separate judicial branch. The Crown embodies the executive authority, the National Assembly embodies the legislative authority, and the Court embodies the judicial authority. The Crown does not appoint judges at will; judicial independence is constitutionally protected. Instead, the monarch participates in the formal appointment of senior judges, but cannot simply choose political allies.

At the top, there is the High Court of Morvainne. It is simultaneously the highest appellate court, the kingdom's constitutional court, the final interpreter of national law, the guardian of fundamental rights, and the arbiter of disputes between the Crown, the provinces, and the municipalities. It has nine judges on it, who are nominated by an independent judicial council, confirmed by the National Assembly, and formally appointed by the monarch. They serve for tenures of 50 years at most, or less if they voluntarily retire.

The High Court possesses strong constitutional review. It can declare acts of the National Assembly, royal decrees, provincial legislation, municipal regulations, emergency measures, and administrative actions unconstitutional and unlawful, and even invalidate parts of the Royal Charters if they conflict with fundamental constitutional rights.

Moreover, the High Court has the power to overrule the reigning monarch. An example for this would be the Crown issueing an emergency decree restricting movement, and upon being challenged through a citizen, the High Court could render the decree void if the conditions for emergency authority were not met. While the reigning monarch might disagree publicly, they will comply.

The legal tradition of Morvainne is essentially a hybrid system of codified civil law and binding judicial precedent. Civil law characteristics include comprehensive statutes, a written constitution, administrative, civil, and criminal codes and formal legal procedures, all while remembering that legislation is the primary source of law. Common-law characteristics are that previous judicial decisions matter for decision making, higher-court precedent binds lower courts, judicial reasoning becomes an important part of legal tradition, constitutional case law accumulates over centuries, and that courts are expected to interpret ambiguous legislation. Morvaini judges often have the unusual advantage of personally remembering cases that happened centuries ago.

Longevity forces the judicial system of Morvainne to develop a very sophisticated principle, being that precedent is authoritative, but not immutable. Courts can overturn earlier precedents if circumstances have fundamentally changed, if old interpretation contradicts the constitution, whenever new evidence reveals serious error, and when precedents produce systematic injustice. Would this not be the case, centuries old interpretation could become practically unchangeable.

From top to bottom, there are four levels of court hierarchy:
Local courts: They deal with everyday disputes, such as theft, assault, contract matters, property issues, inheritance, family disputes, local regulations, minor magical offenses, and workplace relations. They are deliberately accessible, and widespread throughout Morvainne.
Provincial courts: They handle serious criminal cases, major civil litigation, large commercial disputes, provincial administrative disputes, and, notably, appeals from local courts, which they also oversee.
(Specialized) national courts: These are reserved for areas where ordinary courts are no longer precise enough. Examples for these are the National Court of Magical Affairs, which handles high-level magical regulation, magical accidents and contracts, and dangerous artifacts; or, the Court of Civic Service, which directly handles delicate disputes involving the Civic Vigil and other matters of compulsory service.
High court: As mentioned before, it serves as the final interpreter of law, and handles constitutional disputes, fundamental rights, and administrative matters regarding the entirety of Morvainne.

Juries are appointed, but not for every case. They are an important Morvaini institution, particularly for serious criminal cases, which are heard by a professional judge and a citizen jury. The judge goes on to determine admissibility of evidence, legal questions, procedure, and the sentencing framework, while the jury determines facts and guilt. The jurors are randomly selected from eligible citizens; eligibility requires adulthood (17 years of age and upwards), citizenship (or alternatively long-term recognized residence), no former serious criminal conviction, and no direct conflict of interest. No citizen may serve on more than one jury every 20 years. Civil juries are less common; commercial and contractual disputes are generally decided by judges. Major civil cases involving catastrophic injury, public harm, or institutional misconduct may use juries, however.

People cannot generally bypass the courts, but there are several legitimate alternatives. Mediation is a common second path, particularly appropriate for family disputes, business disagreements, guild disputes, inheritance matters, and disputes with neighbors. Another option is arbitration, which is common in commerce and for international contracts. A few select rural communities also have longstanding customary mechanisms for minor disputes. Ultimately, however, these cannot override fundamental rights or criminal law. This principle also applies to nobles, and even to the Crown. In rare cases, there might be royal clemency; the reigning monarch can pardon, commute, or suspend certain sentences, but they cannot declare a person innocent, prevent criminal investigation, cancel civil judgment, or erase constitutional review - and, most importantly, the monarch cannot pardon themselves. The National Assembly can change the law, but never retroactively declare that a court made a wrong decision, and it cannot pass legislation explicitly violating protected constitutional rights without constitutional consequences.

In regards to territorial autonomy, the system is decentralized, but constitutionally unified. Provinces can absolutely administer justice, but they do not bypass independent sovereignty. Provincial authority includes provincial courts, local policing, provincial civil regulations, and local administrative tribunals, while national authority manages criminal code, fundamental rights, constitutional law, interprovincial disputes, and major national crimes. If provincial law conflicts with national law, the national law will almost always win; however, there is an important caveat, being that provincial autonomy is constitutionally protected. If the National Assembly tries to regulate something constitutionally reserved to the provinces, the High Court can strike it down. This especially caters to the aforementioned Royal Charters.

Formally, laws are applied equally, which is a deeply held constitutional principle. Class, house, wealth, occupation, province, ancestry, gender, magical ability, and species cannot legally change a person's fundamental rights. Unfortunately, there are occasional cases of discrimination, as individual judges can be biased, authorities can be corrupt, nobles will exert influence, wealthy defendants can hire more capable lawyers, and provincial cultures can produce different enforcement patterns. However, these are recognized by the system as failures, rather than accepting them as legitimate features. Morvainne also explicitly distinguishes species from personhood. Any recognized sapient being within Morvaini jurisdiction receives fundamental legal protection. A non-Luneri person is not legally a lesser citizen merely because they are biologically different.

In terms of criminal justice, Morvainne acts relatively rehabilitative. The core principle is that "justice must protect the living, remember the dead, and prevent harm from being repeated". Sentences might include imprisonment, restitution, restorative civic service, fines, professional disqualification, magical restrictions, supervised rehabilitation, and in severe cases, exile. Capital punishment was abolished over 1,500 years ago. Once again, the longevity of the Luneri changes how imprisonment is handled, however, as a "life sentence" could literally mean several centuries or even more. This is why, for exceptionally long sentences, an independent panel must reassess the prisoner after a fixed period of time. These intervals can be anywhere from 10 to 50 years.

The legal system is very much respected, but not universally loved. Citizens regularly complain about bureaucracy, slow appeals, ancient precedents, legal technicalities, provincial differences, and other matters. However, awareness that citizens will always find a place to appeal when they are wronged is exceptionally widespread, granting the judicial system an enormous level of legitimacy. Law enforcement is very consistent in general, because it does utilize overlapping institutions, such as provincial constabularies, judicial enforcement officers, inspectors, ombudsmen, and independent prosecutors. Deliberate refusal to enforce a court order is considered a serious offense in itself.

Morvainne absolutely recognizes international law as a legitimate and important part of its own legal system. They have been making treaties for centuries, after all. There is an enormous body of international agreements, involving matters such as trade, border security, extradition, river control, navigation, monster migration, matters evolving around magical artifacts, environmental protection, treatment of foreign citizens, war-related issues and refugees, diplomatic immunity, and many more. In the past, many international organizations mutually working with neighboring nations, including Imantica and Enyvala, have existed, which have mostly broken down over time; Queen Fabienne IV does, however, intend to reestablish these.

As for which law is supreme, the hierarchy intends that Morvainne's constitution is always ranked the highest, followed by national law, ratified international treaties, provincial law, and administrative regulations. International law cannot override Morvainne's constitution in any case, even if the monarch signed it. The High Court has authority to review treaties before or after ratification; however, once Morvainne validly enters an international treaty, it is legally binding domestically. If international law conflicts with national legislation, the Kingdom must face an international obligation to renegotiate, withdraw, or otherwise resolve the conflict, while internally, the constitution remains supreme. If Morvainne voluntarily accept jurisdiction by way of treaty, international courts can technically judge Morvainne, and the government must then find a way to satisfy the international obligation without violating the constitution.

Rhyvuskyvaja wrote:

That hurts my soul. Write down your passwords next time.

I also didn't put my email and make it automatically log me in but I did on this one so yay!

Oseao wrote:

Good morning

Another day, another day we get closer to couping Zickton.

The winner of this edition of the biweekly Hyperion Guard giveaway is Malos, who wins a S4 Crazy Girl!

If you, too, would like a chance at winning a legendary card every two weeks, all you need to do is be in the World Assembly and endorse Oseao, Irenima and Alainian Otters!

Horizon - Hyperion Guards

by The New Horizons of Sandy Wilds

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Hyperion Guards

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Introduction

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The Hyperion Guards are an elite group, known for their loyalty and commitment to our mission of spreading Horizon's influence across the universe. This dispatch outlines how you can join this distinguished order and the benefits of membership.

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How To Join

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Becoming a Hyperion Guard is straightforward! Simply join the  World Assembly and endorse our delegate, Oseao, as well as Celestial Sentinels Irenima and Alainian Otters.

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Membership Benefits

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1. Gaining Starborn (citizen) status, which allows you to vote, run in elections, and hold regional office.

2. Easy and immediate, discord-free, access to our regional roleplay.

3. Chance to win a  free legendary card every two weeks.
   

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Checking Membership

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A list of all current Hyperion Guards is included in this dispatch. For questions, feel free to telegram Oseao.

Acraris	Aioland	Airistocratic Radiance	Al Jasmainia	Alta Republica Galactica
Amaranthian	Amatsukini	Arestra	Athein	Aualane
Author-Ity	Axercualtzin	Azure Spectre Federation	Bahalbha Island	Beimin
BEWARE	Billeyrie	Burota	Chaseon	Chippan
Crirideati	Daikuro	Dawn Fleet	Democratic Crocuta	Direnne
Drientin	Eastern Atokray	Eggtowne	Eirkleesm	Elissian
Eloldar	Enyvala	Feminasolum	Fera Stellarum	First French Empire 2
Free Blus	Freedom Planet	Freemer	Gepoajhobsdf	Geraluden
Gereadhu	Gerrin	Geruna	Geumhwaro	Giocoso
Glorpesia	Grus Indus Pavo and Octans	HQLand	Iazadi	Imauggland
Industrica	Invernus	Italicra	Jojovellier	Jusnagione
Karel37	Katowicq	Kerisl	Koryujin	Leshokelenr
Luminous Valentine	Lykovia	Lyramisa	M1A2 Abrams Tank	Malos
MBok	Memory Address	Mercureia	Mex Laing	Midgardinca
Minusland	Morvainne	Nang Gai	New Ruach	New Ryansville
No Vadi	NURSS	Olaram	Patterthippe	Pawsome
Place that Hates You	Povodje	Qizerra	Republic of Aspen	Ressantevia
Rhyvuskyvaja	Rykhia	Saint wunker	Sardessia	Serdaryaristan
Siphon	Sokiata	Solstein	Southern Karafuto	Suomenlinnan Merilinnoitus
Swegeria	Tambi	The Dovahkiin Caliphate	The Fantastical	The Great Eggman Empire
The Last Tribes	The Lizard Army	The Ministry of Moles	The United autistic powers	The Watandiknew
Theadar	Thestandia	Tomfoolery Corporation	Tracholse	Trarielden
Tristaea	Ubertas	Unfettered Evil	Urgorri	Viritanskyy
Western Cona	Western States of Zijixin	Workuta Thob	Xikebaniya	Ydinvoimapom
Zila

This dispatch is updated automatically. Please report any inaccuracies in the data to Merethin.

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