In Ancient Greece, dokimasia (Greek: δοκιμασία) was the name used at Athens to denote the process of ascertaining the capacity of the citizens for the exercise of public rights and duties.
The purpose of this was to ascertain not their actual capacity for the post, which was presupposed in all candidates, but their descent from Athenian citizens, their life and character, and (in the case of some offices which involved the administration of large sums) even the amount of their property.
If such objections were held to be valid, the candidate was rejected; but he had the right to appeal the decision to a court, which would take cognizance of the matter in judicial form.
The archons within a dokimasia would not have to base the decisions they made to exclude an incoming official on strict laws, they were allowed to follow their own political and/or moral standings to see if a man should be viewed as dangerous to the people.
[2] A speaker in a public assembly might thus be brought before a court by any citizen, for only one possessing the full right of citizenship could legally address the people.