Definition

1. Noun:
   • High criminal court (historical/obsolete): In the former judicial system of Vietnam, this term referred to a court with jurisdiction over serious criminal cases. It is comparable to a "Court of Assizes" or a "Criminal Court" of high instance.
   • Assizes: A direct translation reflecting the historical French judicial influence, referring to sessions of a court with authority over major crimes.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Vụ án đó đã được đưa ra xét xử tại tòa đại hình. (That case was brought to trial at the high criminal court.)
  • Tòa đại hình trong hệ thống cũ có thẩm quyền xét xử các tội phạm nghiêm trọng. (The high criminal court in the old system had jurisdiction to try serious crimes.)

Advanced Usage

• "phiên tòa đại hình": session of the high criminal court, assize court session.
  • Phiên tòa đại hình đã kết thúc vào chiều qua. (The session of the high criminal court concluded yesterday afternoon.)

Variants and Related Words

• Tòa án (n): court, tribunal. A general term for any court.
• Hình sự (adj/n): criminal (as in criminal law, criminal case). Often used in modern terms like "tòa án hình sự" (criminal court).
• Phúc thẩm (adj/n): appellate. Used in "tòa phúc thẩm" (appellate court), which is a different level in the judicial hierarchy.

Synonyms

• Tòa án hình sự cấp cao: high-level criminal court (descriptive modern equivalent).
• Tòa án xét xử các trọng tội: court for trying felonies/major crimes.

Notes on Usage

• This term (đại hình) is now considered obsolete (cũ) in contemporary Vietnamese legal terminology. It refers specifically to a court institution from a past judicial system, primarily influenced by French law.
• In modern contexts, the Vietnamese judicial system uses different classifications and names for courts (e.g., Tòa án nhân dân cấp tỉnh, Tòa án nhân dân cấp cao, Tòa phúc thẩm). The concept of a singular "high criminal court" is not directly translated by this term today.
• When encountering this word in historical texts, legal documents from the past, or literature, it should be understood in its historical context.

1. (cũ) High sriminal court