Judgments of lower courts can be appealed. Generally there are two stages of appeal in civil proceedings.
In general, human rights do not provide for a right to appeal in all cases and all disputes. However, if Slovak law allows you to appeal a lower court’s decision, which it does in the majority of cases, higher courts at all stages of appeal must follow the requirements and guarantees to a fair trial.
Stages of appeal:
After you have received a decision or judgment of the court of first instance (rozsudok, uznesenie, platobný rozkaz), you may appeal it to a higher court. In Slovakia, you have the right to appeal the majority of first instance court decisions and judgments before a higher court - the court of appeal (odvolanie). In the review process, the court of appeal has the same power to examine your case as the lower court (including disagreements on facts in your case and the application of law). In a court of appeal, you have the same rights and duties as before a lower court.
A court of appeal’s judgment can be further appealed by an appellate review (dovolanie) before a court of appellate review (dovolací súd): the Supreme Court of the Slovak Republic (Najvyšší súd Slovenskej republiky). The court of appellate review will not review the facts of your case again. This court will only examine your complaints about a lower court’s mistakes, which are related to the incorrect application of law or violations of procedural rules. These mistakes must be serious enough to have led to a potentially incorrect decision.
Since a court of appellate review only deals with complaints about the application or violations of law, the requirements for your access to the court (such as the quality of legal arguments in your submission or court fees) can be stricter than in a court of appeals. There are several categories of cases, for example the so-called “small claims” cases claiming a relatively small amount of money, which are not reviewed by a court of appellate review.