Extraordinary Appeal Proceedings in Criminal Matters

1. General Information

Extraordinary appeal is an extraordinary remedy regulated in Section 265a et seq. of the Act No 141/1961 Coll., the Code of Criminal Procedure. The Supreme Court hears and decides on extraordinary appeals in the Tdo agenda. The filing of an extraordinary appeal is a specific legal action that is governed by certain rules and procedures, which are described below.

2. When and Where Can an Extraordinary Appeal Be Filed

  • An extraordinary appeal may be filed against a final decision of a court of second instance and only based on the grounds laid down by law. These grounds are further specified in Section 265b of the Code of Criminal Procedure and lie in some serious procedural defects, incorrect assessment of substantive law or failure to comply with the statutory conditions for a particular decision.

  • It can only be filed against certain important decisions, such as a judgment finding the accused guilty or acquitting them or a decision to discontinue prosecution.

  • An extraordinary appeal is to be filed with the court that decided the case at first instance (district or regional court). This court shall then examine whether all the required elements of an extraordinary appeal have been met and shall take any steps necessary to remedy any deficiencies in the content of the extraordinary appeal. After the expiration of the entire time limit for filing an extraordinary appeal, the extraordinary appeal is delivered to the Supreme Court for further proceedings.

3. Who May File an Extraordinary Appeal

  • An extraordinary appeal may be filed by an accused on the grounds that a decision of the court is incorrect in a matter which directly affects them. In addition, an extraordinary appeal may also be filed both in favour or against the accused by the Prosecutor General or the competent authority of the European Public Prosecutor's Office.

4. Legal Representation by an Attorney

  • Only the accused's defence counsel may file an extraordinary appeal on behalf of the accused, even if the accused did not have a defence counsel in the previous criminal proceedings. Therefore, if the accused wishes to file an extraordinary appeal, they must instruct their existing defence counsel or choose a defence counsel for that purpose on their own.

  • In the event that the accused does not file an extraordinary appeal through a defence counsel, but only makes their own submission, the Supreme Court does not decide on it, but sends it, depending on its content, either to the competent court as an application for permission of a retrial, or to the Minister of Justice as an incentive to file a complaint on the violation of the law, or returns it to the accused with an instruction that they may file an extraordinary appeal only through a defence counsel. Such submissions are handled by the Supreme Court in the Ntn agenda.

5. Time Limit for Filing an Extraordinary Appeal

  • An extraordinary appeal may be filed within two months of the delivery of the decision of the court of appeal or of the court that decided on a complaint. The time limit for filing an extraordinary appeal cannot be extended or waived. An extraordinary appeal filed late will be rejected by the Supreme Court without substantive review.

  • The period to file an extraordinary appeal starts to run on the day following the day on which the copy of the decision of the court of second instance is delivered. If the last day of 
    the two-month period is a Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday, the last day of the period shall be postponed to the next following working day.

  • The time limit for filing an extraordinary appeal shall also be met if the extraordinary appeal is filed within the time limit with the Supreme Court or with the court which decided the case at second instance, or if the submission containing the extraordinary appeal is posted within the time limit and addressed to the court before which it is to be filed or to the Supreme Court.

6. Required Elements of an Extraordinary Appeal

  • As a rule, an extraordinary appeal shall be submitted in writing (usually from the defence counsel's data box to the court's data box) and shall sufficiently identify who is submitting it and to whom it is addressed and shall be dated and signed. An extraordinary appeal sent from a data box shall be deemed to have been electronically filed and signed.

  • It must also indicate the decision which the extraordinary appeal challenges, i.e., the date on which it was issued, the case number of the decision, and the court which issued it. It must also contain specification of the operative parts of the decision which the appellant challenges and the scope of the challenge.

  • Further, it must state the grounds of the extraordinary appeal, i.e., a specific reference to one of the provisions of Section 265b(1) or (2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The reasons for the alleged defect in the contested decision or in the proceedings preceding it, including a reference to which legal provisions were incorrectly interpreted or applied, must also be specified.

  • Finally, the extraordinary appeal should indicate how, according to the appellant, the Supreme Court should decide, i.e., whether it should, for example, annul the contested decision and refer the case back to a lower court for a new hearing, or whether it should decide the case itself.

  • The scope of the extraordinary appeal and the grounds of the extraordinary appeal may be changed only during the period for filing the extraordinary appeal. 

  • In deciding on the extraordinary appeal, the Supreme Court is limited to reviewing only the operative parts of the decisions and the grounds challenged by the extraordinary appeal.

7. Court Fee

  • In criminal proceedings, there is no court fee for filing an extraordinary appeal to the Supreme Court. This means that an appellant who files an extraordinary appeal against a final decision of a court of second instance does not have to pay any fee for their extraordinary appeal to be heard by the Supreme Court.

  • However, an appellant whose extraordinary appeal is rejected or dismissed, shall additionally reimburse the State for the costs of the extraordinary appeal proceedings. The fixed amount is 10 000 CZK.

8. Inadmissibility of an Extraordinary Appeal

  • An extraordinary appeal is not admissible against any other decision than that referred to in Section 265b(1) or (2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, e.g., only against a decision of a court of first instance (including a criminal order), against a decision which is not final or has already been annulled, against a decisions issued in enforcement proceedings or against decisions issued by another investigative, prosecuting and adjudicating authority other than a court. 

  • An extraordinary appeal filed by the Prosecutor General or the competent authority of the European Public Prosecutor's Office against an accused who has died is also inadmissible; however, an extraordinary appeal may be lodged in their favour.

9. Extraordinary Appeal Proceeding and Its Length

  • After an extraordinary appeal is filed, its copy is delivered to the other person (the opposing party) entitled to file an extraordinary appeal, who may comment on it, and then it is submitted to the Supreme Court with the file. The Supreme Court shall then examine the admissibility and merits of the extraordinary appeal.

  • The Supreme Court decides on the extraordinary appeal in open or closed session. Section 265r(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure governs when a closed session may be ordered, and certain details of the public session are set out in Section 265r(2) to (7) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

  • The criminal law does not provide for any time limit within which an extraordinary appeal must be decided. However, statistics for the most recent period show that the average time taken to process an extraordinary appeal was between 40 and 50 days.

10. Decision of the Supreme Court on an Extraordinary Appeal

The ways in which the Supreme Court may decide on an extraordinary appeal are as follows – the Supreme Court: 

a) Rejects the extraordinary appeal without substantial review of the decision and the proceedings preceding it; for example: if the extraordinary appeal is not admissible or if it is filed late or by a person who was not entitled to do so, if it was filed on grounds which do not correspond to the grounds of extraordinary appeal raised, if it is manifestly ill-founded, etc.,

b) Dismisses the extraordinary appeal after a substantial review, if it finds that the extraordinary appeal is unsubstantiated,

c) Annuls the contested decision (and, where applicable, the proceedings preceding it) and

  • refers the case back to the court of appeal for further proceedings and decision,

  • decides the case on itself,

  • partly decides the case itself and partly refers the case back for further proceedings and decision,

d) refers the case for completion of the missing or incomplete operative part of the decision without annulling the contested decision,

e) completes itseld the missing or incomplete operative part of the decision without annulling the contested decision.

  • With the exception of a retrial, no remedy is admissible against the decision on the extraordinary appeal.


Relevant Legislation:

  • Act No 141/1961 Coll., the Code of Criminal Procedure, as amended

  • Act No 40/2009 Coll., the Criminal Code, as amended

  • Act No 218/2003 Coll., on the Liability of Juveniles for Illegal Acts, on Juvenile Justice and on the Amendments to Certain Other Acts (Juvenile Justice Act), as amended

  • Act No 418/2011 Coll., on Criminal Liability of Legal Entities and Proceedings Against Them, as amended

  • Constitutional Act No 1/1993 Coll., Constitution of the Czech Republic, as amended

  • Resolution No 2/1993 Coll., on the Declaration of the CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS as a Part of the Constitutional Order of the Czech Republic, as amended

  • Act No 6/2002 Coll., on Courts, Judges, Lay Judges and State Administration of Courts and on Amendments to Certain Other Acts (Act on Courts and Judges), as amended