On the Concept of an Appellate Measure in a Criminal Proceeding

Abstract The aim of the paper is to analyse how the term ‘appellate measure’ is interpreted in the Polish doctrine of criminal procedure law and, in particular, to assess the accuracy of the assumption that the possibility of recognising a particular means of indictment of a decision as an appellate measure is determined by its normative features. Based on the analysis of the characteristic features of each means of indictment of a decision, an attempt is made to demonstrate that this assumption may be regarded as incorrect. It is suggested that the previous definition of an appellate measure be revised, and recognise that this concept is purely of a conventional (traditional) nature, which means that the possibility of classifying a particular means of indictment of a decision as an appellate measure should not depend on its nature or similarity to other legal measures considered as means of indictment of a decision.