309 been founded and the collegial system had achieved a certain amount of stability and routine, however, it was then possible to transfer this system of decision-making to other branches of the state apparatus without difficulty.-' The structure and the responsibilities of the Svea Court of Appeals were defined by the ordinance on trials of 1614, which established this new court. In political terms, the court of appeals was a manifestation of the aristocracy’s expansion of power after the death of Charles IX. The aristocracy viewed a systematically organized bureaucracy as an effective tool for gaining control of the state apparatus, and this is illustrated very clearly by the markedly aristocratic composition of the Svea Court of Appeals.-- The court was to consist of fourteen judges divided into three classes. The first class was the so-called council class, with four of the judges being recruited from this aristocratic group. The steward of the realm, or president of the court, was, of course, to belong to the aristocratic State Council. The second class consisted of five representatives of the nobility, and the third class, finally, was given the designation “the learned class” and was to consist of four “learned and legally experienced honorable men” recruited from among the commoners.-'”' In terms of its jurisdiction, the Svea Court of Appeals was to serve as the supreme court for the entire realm and was to issue royal judgements in this capacity.-^ The court was thus charged with making the final decisions in civil and criminal cases pursued through the normal channels. In addition to this, however, the court was also to adjudicate disputes arising from trials, as well as to supervise and oversee the operations of the lower courts. In certain cases, the Svea Court of Appeals was also to serve as a court of the first instance. Among other things, it was to serve as a forum privilegiatum for the nobility in more serious criminal cases, and, as it was stated further in the ordinance on trials, and is important to point out here, “where any members of the nobility have a quarrel among themselves or with others over some inheritance or landed estate within the kingdom, then it is to take place before this our royal court of appeals. ” 25 Nils Edln, Den svenska centralregeringens utveckling till kollegial organisation i början av sjuttonde århundradet (1602—1634) (Uppsala, 1902), 113—114. -- Göran Rystad, “Med råds råde eller efter konungens godtycke? Makten över ämbetstillsättningarna som politisk stridsfråga under 1600-talet,” Scandia, 29 (1963), 177—178. SCHMEUEMAN, 137. Ibid., loc.cit. Ibid., 18. For a more detailed description of tltc jurisdiction of the Svea Court
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