The term cassation is used exclusively in the legal field and as a general idea indicates the annulment of a sentence, that is, its repeal or revocation.
This legal term can be presented in several senses: appeal, court of cassation, civil cassation or cassation in the interest of the law. However, the most common is known as an appeal.
Introduction to the appeal as a legal concept
The appeal is a means of challenge that has an extraordinary character. Something is contested in law when there is some type of illegality in a procedure. And the appeal is precisely a means of challenge. It must be borne in mind that the legislation normally establishes mechanisms to decree the invalidity of the opinions when there is a flawed procedure for any reason, being in this context when the appeal is applicable.
As an extraordinary appeal, the cassation can be carried out in certain situations included in the law. The purpose of this remedy is twofold: protection in compliance with the rules in the legal system and trying to unify sentences to avoid different interpretations of the same law (as a general rule cassation judgments are usually established as jurisprudence in most countries ). On the other hand, cassation as a resource allows the review of the evidence presented when it is considered that there may be an error in its initial assessment. In other words, the purpose of this appeal is to substitute a judicial resolution for a new pronouncement.
Resolution moment
The resolutions that can be appealed in cassation are the following: the sentences handed down by those courts that are not subject to appeal, those sentences handed down in the second instance by a higher court and in relation to any appeal and, thirdly, those orders Final decisions issued by the courts when there has been an infringement in compliance with the law.
Under the regulations of each country
The grounds for cassation are regulated in the legislation of each country. In general, one can speak of three main reasons: cassation for infringement of the law, cassation for formal problems and cassation for breach of a constitutional precept or law.
In practice, the appeal is usually used as a legal mechanism to carry out another trial and thus prolong the action of justice. For this reason, some specialists expose the need to reform the appeal, since with some frequency it is used in a perverse way.
