OREANDA-NEWS. December 11, 2009. President of the Constitutional Court Valery Zorkin briefed the President on the results of the court’s work over the last year, in particular the recent decisions defining legal incapacity of individuals.

Mr Zorkin said in cases where the courts must rule on an individual’s legal incapacity, the individual in question will have the opportunity to express their own view. Mr Medvedev called this decision a step forward in guaranteeing people’s rights and freedoms.

The President noted that the government authorities will help to bolster the judicial branch of power’s standing in the country. Respect for court rulings, in particular those of the Constitutional Court, are a fundamental part of the rule-of-law state that we have been talking about for the last two decades, Mr Medvedev said.

The President congratulated the judges on Constitution Day, observed as a state holiday on December 12.