Moldova Bar Traineeship Admission Exam cheat sheet

Full legal capacity (capacitate deplină de exercițiu) is acquired at age 18; a minor who marries acquires full capacity upon marriage, and emancipation may be granted by court at 16 for good reasons.

Limited capacity minors (7–18) may personally conclude acts of ordinary administration and acts of disposition of small value; other acts require parental or guardian consent or court authorization.

Prescription of the right to bring an action (prescripția) is generally 3 years; 10 years for immovable property actions; 3 years for periodic payments; the limitation period runs from when the injured party knew or should have known of the damage and the tortfeasor.

Ownership is acquired by: occupation, accession, usucapion (10 years movable, 20 years immovable, good faith and just title for shortened periods), contract, inheritance, and court decision.

Usucapion (uzucapiune): 10 years for movable property; for immovable property 10 years if good faith and just title, otherwise 20 years; the possessor must be in continuous, peaceful, public, and unambiguous possession as owner.

Contracts require mutual assent, capacity, a determinate object, and a lawful, moral cause; absence of cause or unlawful cause renders the contract void.

Prescription of the right to bring an action (prescripția) is a defense that must be invoked; the court may not apply it ex officio.

Damages in tort include: actual loss (damnum emergens) and lost profit (lucrum cessans); moral damages may be awarded for non-pecuniary harm.

Ownership of immovable property is transferred by registration in the Real Estate Register (cadastru); for movable property, transfer occurs upon delivery unless the parties agree otherwise.

Jurisdiction: the defendant's domicile determines general territorial jurisdiction; exceptions include consumer claims (consumer's domicile), immovable property claims (location of property), and succession claims (last domicile of deceased).

The court fee (taxa de timbru) must be paid at filing; if not paid, the court grants a deadline; failure to pay leads to annulment of the application.

The statement of claim must include: court name, parties and their identification data, object of the claim, facts and legal grounds, evidence, signature, and annexes.

Procedural deadlines: 15 days for filing an appeal (apel) against a first-instance judgment; 30 days for cassation appeal (recurs) against an appellate decision; 10 days for a request for revision (revizuire) in certain cases.

Evidence: documents, witness testimony, expert reports, inspection, and party statements; witnesses may not testify on legal acts that require written form.

Interim measures (măsuri provizorii) may be ordered by the court before judgment to prevent irreparable harm, upon payment of a bond.

The court may order the opposing party to pay expenses (cheltuieli de judecată) in proportion to the claim; the losing party pays the winner's expenses.

Judgments become final (definitive) when no appeal is filed within the deadline or when the appeal is decided; final judgments are enforceable.

Criminal liability requires: actus reus (the act), mens rea (intent or negligence), unlawful act, and guilt; the age of criminal responsibility is 14 for serious crimes and 16 for other crimes.

Intent (intenție) means the perpetrator foresees the result and wishes or accepts it; negligence (imprudență) means the perpetrator foresees the result but does not accept it, or fails to foresee it though could have.

Justifiable defense (legitima apărare) removes criminality if the defense is proportionate to the attack; excess of defense may mitigate liability.

Necessity (starea de necesitate) removes criminality when the harm is caused to save a greater interest, and the harm is proportionate.

Attempt (tentativa) is punishable for most crimes; the penalty is reduced by one quarter to one half compared to the completed crime.

Complicity (complicitate) and co-perpetration (coautorat) attract the penalty of the principal; accessories may receive mitigated penalties.

Statute of limitations for criminal liability: 15 years for crimes punishable by life imprisonment; 10 years for crimes punishable by more than 10 years; 5 years for crimes punishable by up to 10 years; 3 years for lesser crimes.

Penalties include: fine, community service, imprisonment, life imprisonment; complementary penalties include prohibition of certain rights, confiscation, and publication of the sentence.

Criminal prosecution is initiated by the prosecutor (procuror) upon a complaint, ex officio, or upon a denunciation; the suspect must be informed of the charges and rights.

Preventive measures: detention (reținere) for up to 72 hours; preventive arrest (arest preventiv) ordered by the court for up to 30 days, extendable up to 180 days in serious cases.

The suspect/defendant has the right to remain silent, to be assisted by counsel (avocat) at all stages, and to have counsel appointed ex officio if indigent.

The criminal investigation is conducted by the criminal investigation body (organul de urmărire penală) under the prosecutor's supervision; the prosecutor may take over the investigation.

The indictment (rechizitoriu) is filed by the prosecutor in court; the court then schedules the preliminary hearing (ședința preliminară) to check legality of evidence and procedure.

Evidence obtained illegally is excluded; the court may order the exclusion of evidence obtained through torture, inhuman treatment, or violation of fundamental rights.

Appeal (apel) against a first-instance criminal judgment must be filed within 15 days; cassation appeal (recurs) within 30 days against an appellate decision.

The injured party (partea vătămată) may join the criminal proceedings as a civil party (parte civilă) to claim damages; the civil action may also be brought separately.

A contravention (contravenție) is an unlawful act with lesser social danger than a crime, punishable by a contraventional sanction; the Contravention Code lists specific offenses.

Contraventional sanctions include: warning (avertisment), fine (amendă), and, where provided, community service or confiscation; fines have maximum limits set by law.

The statute of limitations for applying a contraventional sanction is generally 6 months from the date of the act, or 12 months for certain offenses.

The contraventional fine must be paid within 72 hours if paid on the spot (with a 50% reduction in some cases) or within 30 days from the date the sanction decision becomes final.

The contraventional case is examined by the court (judecătorie) or by the competent authority (e.g., police, local authority) depending on the law; the person has the right to be heard and to present evidence.

The sanction decision (proces-verbal) must include: date, place, description of the act, legal basis, identity of the offender, sanction, and appeal rights; a copy is given to the offender.

Appeal against a contraventional sanction decision is filed within 15 days from the date of communication; the court may annul, reduce, or uphold the sanction.

The burden of proof in contraventional proceedings is on the authority that issued the sanction; the offender benefits from the presumption of innocence.

The Constitution of Moldova is the supreme law; laws and other acts must conform to it; the Constitutional Court (Curtea Constituțională) has jurisdiction to review constitutionality.

Fundamental rights may be restricted only by law, for a legitimate aim, and proportionally; certain rights (e.g., right to life, prohibition of torture) are absolute and cannot be restricted.

The Constitutional Court consists of 6 judges: 2 appointed by Parliament, 2 by the President, and 2 by the Superior Council of Magistracy; term of 6 years, non-renewable.

The Ombudsman (Avocatul Poporului) is appointed by Parliament for 7 years and protects citizens' rights against administrative abuses.

The right to a fair trial (art. 6 ECHR) includes access to court, equality of arms, adversarial proceedings, and a public hearing within a reasonable time.

Freedom of expression may be restricted for national security, public order, morality, or protection of others' rights; restrictions must be necessary in a democratic society.

The right to property is guaranteed; expropriation is allowed only for a public purpose, with just compensation, and under the law.

Citizens have the right to elect and be elected; the right to vote is universal, equal, direct, secret, and freely expressed; the voting age is 18.

Administrative acts are unilateral legal acts issued by public authorities in the exercise of public power; they are presumed legal until annulled.

An administrative act may be challenged before the administrative court (instanța de contencios administrativ) within 30 days from communication, unless a special law provides otherwise.

The administrative court may annul the act, order the authority to issue a new act, or order compensation for damages.

The administrative procedure code (Codul administrativ) sets rules for administrative decision-making, including the right to be heard, access to file, and reasoned decisions.

A person may file a prior complaint (plângere prealabilă) to the issuing authority within 30 days; the authority must respond within 30 days; the complaint is a prerequisite for court action in many cases.

Administrative contracts are subject to administrative jurisdiction; disputes are resolved by administrative courts.

The legality of administrative acts is reviewed by courts; courts may not substitute their discretion for that of the administration, but may check legality.

Public authorities must provide information of public interest upon request; refusal may be challenged in court.

An individual employment contract must be in writing, include essential terms (parties, job, salary, working hours, leave), and be registered with the employer; a copy is given to the employee.

The probation period (perioada de probă) may not exceed 3 months for ordinary employees and 6 months for management positions.

Working time is generally 40 hours per week; overtime is allowed only in exceptional cases and is compensated with time off or increased pay.

Annual paid leave is at least 28 calendar days; certain categories (e.g., teachers, minors) have longer leave.

Dismissal (concediere) is allowed only for legal grounds (e.g., redundancy, misconduct, unfitness); the employee must be notified in writing and may challenge dismissal in court within 30 days.

Severance pay is due in cases of redundancy or employer liquidation; the amount depends on length of service.

Social security contributions: employer and employee contribute to the state social insurance budget; pensions are calculated based on contributions and length of service.

Maternity leave is 126 calendar days (70 before and 56 after birth); paternity leave is 14 calendar days; childcare leave until age 3.

Marriage is concluded before the civil registrar (oficiul stării civile); the legal age for marriage is 18; a court may allow marriage at 16 for good reasons.

Spouses have equal rights and duties; property acquired during marriage is common joint property (bunuri comune) unless a prenuptial agreement provides otherwise.

Divorce may be by mutual consent before the registrar or by court; the court decides on custody, child support, and division of property.

Parental rights and duties are exercised in the best interest of the child; both parents have equal rights and responsibilities.

Child support (pensie de întreținere) is calculated as a share of income: for one child 1/4, for two children 1/3, for three or more 1/2 of the parent's income, but not less than a minimum amount.

Succession: legal heirs are divided into classes: first class: children, spouse, and parents; second class: siblings and grandparents; etc. The surviving spouse receives a share along with heirs.

A will (testament) must be in writing and authenticated; forced heirs (children, spouse, parents) are entitled to a reserved portion (rezerva succesorală) of at least 1/2 of the estate.

Succession is opened at the last domicile of the deceased; the heir may accept or renounce the inheritance within 6 months from the opening of succession.

Business entities include: sole proprietorship (întreprindere individuală), limited liability company (SRL), joint-stock company (SA), general partnership (SNC), limited partnership (SCS), and cooperative.

An SRL requires a minimum capital of 10,000 MDL (as of recent law); an SA requires a minimum capital of 100,000 MDL; capital must be paid before registration or within a set period.

The constitutive act (act constitutiv) of an SRL must include: name, registered office, object of activity, capital, partners' contributions, management, and profit distribution.

Partners of an SRL are liable only up to their contribution; in an SNC, partners are jointly and severally liable for the company's debts.

The general meeting of shareholders/partners is the supreme body; decisions are taken by majority, with special majorities for certain matters (e.g., amendment of constitutive act).

Commercial transactions are subject to the Civil Code and special commercial laws; the principle of freedom of contract applies, with mandatory rules for consumer protection and competition.

Insolvency proceedings may be initiated by the debtor or creditors; the court appoints an insolvency administrator; the aim is to satisfy creditors and, where possible, restructure the business.

Companies must register with the State Registration Chamber (Camera Înregistrării de Stat) and obtain a fiscal code; registration is public.

The legal profession (avocatura) is autonomous and independent; advocates are organized in the Bar Association (Uniunea Avocaților) and local bars.

To become an advocate, one must have a law degree, pass the bar exam, and take an oath; the profession is incompatible with public office, commercial activities, and other paid employment, except teaching and research.

Advocates must maintain professional secrecy (secretul profesional) regarding all information received in the course of their work; this duty is unlimited in time.

Advocates must act with dignity, honesty, and integrity; they must avoid conflicts of interest and may not represent opposing parties in the same case.

The advocate's fee (onorariu) is agreed with the client in writing; fees must be reasonable and may be fixed, hourly, or contingent, but not purely contingent on success in criminal cases.

Disciplinary liability of advocates is determined by the Bar Council; sanctions include warning, reprimand, fine, suspension, and exclusion from the profession.

Advocates have the right to access information, to meet clients in detention, and to present evidence; they may not be prosecuted for their professional opinions expressed in court.

The advocate's status includes the right to refuse to testify on matters learned in professional capacity; clients' files are protected by legal privilege.