HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Court of Appeal of
Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
is one of three courts that were established by Chapter 9 of the 1997 Constitution, the others being the High Court and the
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
. The Court of Appeal was a new institution established when the 1997 Constitution came into effect; the other two courts predated it. The Constitution authorizes the Court of Appeal ''"to hear and determine appeals"'' from all judgements of the High Court. From time to time, other powers may be assigned to this court by law. The Court of Appeal is chaired by the President of the Court of Appeal. The Chief Justice is not permitted to hold this position; the Court of Appeal is the only court from which the Chief Justice is constitutionally barred from membership. This is to give the Court of Appeal a measure of independence from the other courts. Also members of the Court of Appeal are the puisne judges, at least ten in number (who also sit on the High Court), and persons specifically appointed as Justice of Appeal. Section 129 of the Constitution declares that "A judge who has sat in a trial of a matter that is the subject of appeal to a higher court must not sit in the appeal." As the membership of the High Court overlaps to a large extent with that of the Appeal Court and the Supreme Court, this clause is inserted to prevent a conflict of interest. These constitutional arrangements were temporarily upset by the Fiji coup of 2000. On the advice of then-Chief Justice Sir Timoci Tuivaga, the Interim Military Government of
Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore, ...
Frank Bainimarama Josaia Voreqe "Frank" Bainimarama (Fijian: ʃoˈsɛia βoˈreŋɡe mbɛiniˈmarama born 27 April 1954) is a Fijian politician and former naval officer who served as the prime minister of Fiji from 2007 until 2022. A member of the FijiFirst ...
promulgated three decrees suspending the Constitution and reforming the judiciary. The Supreme Court was abolished, and the Chief Justice was made President of the Appeal Court. Following a High Court order on 15 November 2000 to restore the Constitution, upheld by the Court of Appeal on 2 March 2001, the former judicial order was restored. Gordon Ward was appointed as the President of the Appeal Court, which position he held until 2007. In 2007, following the
military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...
of 5 December 2006, six Australian and
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country ...
judges resigned from the court. They were replaced by two
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Malays ...
n judges, "with more appointments from
Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
expected to follow soon". A Court of Appeals ruling in April 2009, which found that the 2006 coup had been illegal, triggered the 2009 Fijian constitutional crisis. Following the ruling by three Court of Appeals judges, all of whom were from
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountains ...
, Australia, the President of Fiji suspended the country's constitution and removed all judges from office. Two of the three judges were on a plane bound for Australia at the time of the President's actions.The Age:A judge for four days as Fiji flails
Kate McClymont, The Age, April 11, 2009 A new panel of three judges was subsequently appointed.


See also

* Constitution of Fiji: Chapter 9 (detailing the composition and role of the judiciary)


References


External links


Jurist Legal Intelligence - Fiji Islands
{{Authority control
Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
Law of Fiji 1997 establishments in Fiji Courts and tribunals established in 1997