Court of Cassation (Democratic Republic of the Congo)

Last updated

The Court of Cassation (French : Cour de cassation) is the main court of last resort in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [1] It has its seat in the Kinshasa Palace of Justice.

The Court judges final appeals with respect to the "normal" system of justice, excluding cases of administrative justice, which go before the Conseil d'État.

The court consists of 26 justices, organized into legislative and judiciary sections. Judges are nominated by the Judicial Service Council, a separate and independent body composed of judges from the lower courts and public prosecutors. [2] The first president of the Court of Cassation also sits on the General Assembly, which makes decisions on matters within the scope of the Supreme Council of the Judiciary (French : Conseil supérieur de la magistrature, CSM). [3] Per Congolese law, the compulsory retirement age for magistrates on the Court of Cassation is 70 years old.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Court of Cassation (France)</span> Highest judicial court in France

The Court of Cassation is the supreme court for civil and criminal cases in France. It is one of the country's four apex courts, along with the Council of State, the Constitutional Council and the Jurisdictional Disputes Tribunal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conseil d'État (France)</span> French administrative justice institution and legal counsel to the government

In France, the Conseil d'État is a governmental body that acts both as legal adviser to the executive branch and as the supreme court for administrative justice, which is one of the two branches of the French judiciary system. Established in 1799 by Napoleon as a successor to the King's Council, it is located in the Palais-Royal in Paris and is primarily made up of top-level legal officers. The Vice President of the Council of State ranks as the ninth most important civil servant in France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitutional Council (France)</span> National constitutional ruling body of the French Republic

The Constitutional Council is the highest constitutional authority in France. It was established by the Constitution of the Fifth Republic on 4 October 1958 to ensure that constitutional principles and rules are upheld. It is housed in the Palais-Royal, Paris. Its main activity is to rule on whether proposed statutes conform with the Constitution, after they have been voted by Parliament and before they are signed into law by the President of the Republic, or passed by the government as a decree, which has law status in many domains, a right granted to the government under delegation of Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judiciary of France</span> Overview of Frances court system

France's independent court system enjoys special statutory protection from the executive branch. Procedures for the appointment, promotion, and removal of judges vary depending on whether it is for the ordinary or administrative stream. Judicial appointments in the judicial stream must be approved by a special panel, the High Council of the Judiciary. Once appointed, career judges serve for life and cannot be removed without specific disciplinary proceedings conducted before the council with due process.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judicial system of Turkey</span> National court system of the Republic of Turkey

The judicial system of Turkey is defined by Articles 138 to 160 of the Constitution of Turkey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law of France</span>

French law has a dual jurisdictional system comprising private law, also known as judicial law, and public law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Council of State (Belgium)</span>

Council of State, is the supreme administrative court of Belgium. Its functions include assisting the executive with legal advice and being the supreme court for administrative justice. Its members are high level jurists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supreme court</span> Highest court in a jurisdiction

In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, and highcourt of appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of a supreme court are not subject to further review by any other court. Supreme courts typically function primarily as appellate courts, hearing appeals from decisions of lower trial courts, or from intermediate-level appellate courts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Council of Justice</span> Advisory judicial body in Brazil

The National Council of Justice (CNJ) is an administrative and oversight organ of the Brazilian Judiciary created by constitutional amendment in 2004 as a part of judicial reform. Among its responsibilities are ensuring that the judicial system remains autonomous, conducting disciplinary proceedings against members of the Judiciary, and compiling and publishing statistics on the Brazilian court system. The Council has nationwide jurisdiction over all courts except the Supreme Federal Court, but makes no rulings on cases and does not review judgements of other courts. Its fifteen members are chosen by the Supreme Federal Court for two-year terms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supreme Court (Serbia)</span> Highest court in Serbia

The Supreme Court, earlier known as the Supreme Court of Cassation, is the court of last resort in the Republic of Serbia. It is the court of cassation which reviews and possibly overturns previous rulings made by lower courts. It was established in 1846 by a decree of Prince Aleksandar Karađorđević. In the last 160 years since it was established, the Court has asserted its authority within judiciary in Serbia and beyond. The Supreme Court is today authorized by the Constitution of Serbia and the Law on Organization of Courts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judiciary of Italy</span> Overview of Italian judiciary

The judiciary of Italy is a system of courts that interpret and apply the law in the Italian Republic. In Italy, judges are public officials and, since they exercise one of the sovereign powers of the State, only Italian citizens are eligible for judgeship. In order to become a judge, applicants must obtain a degree of higher education as well as pass written and oral examinations. However, most training and experience is gained through the judicial organization itself. The potential candidates then work their way up from the bottom through promotions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supreme Court of Albania</span> Highest court in Albanias judicial system

The Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania is the highest court of Albania and is the final court of appeals in the country's judicial system. It is composed of seventeen judges: the Chief Justice and sixteen Members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luzolo Bambi Lessa</span>

Emmanuel-Janvier Luzolo Bambi Lessa is a politician in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He was appointed Minister of Justice in the Muzito cabinet in October 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Politics of France</span> Political system of France

The politics of France take place with the framework of a semi-presidential system determined by the French Constitution of the French Fifth Republic. The nation declares itself to be an "indivisible, secular, democratic, and social Republic". The constitution provides for a separation of powers and proclaims France's "attachment to the Rights of Man and the principles of National Sovereignty as defined by the Declaration of 1789".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judiciary of Belgium</span> Court system overview

The judiciary of Belgium is similar to the French judiciary. Belgium evolved from a unitary to a federal state, but its judicial system has not been adapted to a federal system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supreme Court of the Dominican Republic</span>

The Supreme Court of the Dominican Republic is the highest court existing in the Republic and is, therefore, the head of the judiciary in the country.

The Federal Supreme Court of Ethiopia is the highest court in Ethiopia. It was established by the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia constitution in 1994 and is currently located in Addis Ababa. Article 78 of the Constitution establishes the judiciary and at the top is the FSC. By the Constitution, the Federal Supreme Court has "the power of cassation over any final court decision containing a basic error of law". In 2018, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed appointed Meaza Ashenafi to be the first female president 0f the Federal Supreme Court. Solomon Areda Waktolla was appointed as Vice President of the Federal Supreme Court. Both were resigned by the Parliament on 17 January 2023, and replaced by Tewdros Mihret and Abeba Embiale as Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice of the Supreme Court respectively.

The Judiciary of Cambodia is independent from the rest of the government of Cambodia, as specified by the Cambodian Constitution. The judiciary follows civil law tradition, the instruction being entrusted to a judge and the prosecutors contenting themselves with requesting the application of the law.


The High Council of Judges and Prosecutors is a collegial body invested with a preponderant role within the framework of the administration of justice of the Principality of Monaco. The High Council of Judges and Prosecutors was instituted by the law n° 1364 of November 16, 2009 relating to the statute of the magistracy. In November 2018, the new members of the High Judicial Council have been introduced in their new functions, under the chairmanship of Laurent Anselmi, Director of Judicial Services.

References

  1. "UPDATE: The Legal System of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC): Overview and Research - GlobaLex". www.nyulawglobal.org. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  2. Garcia, COL L. Bortoluzzi (2020-09-13). "Congo (DRC) Country Profile – Government/Politics - PKSOI" . Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  3. Liwanga, Roger-Claude (October 2012). "Judicial Independence in the Democratic Republic of Congo: Myth or Reality?". Journal of African Law. 56 (2): 194–214. doi: 10.1017/S0021855312000034 . ISSN   0021-8553. S2CID   144557400.