Civil Law slide 5

1. Introduction to Civil Law
School of Law An Scoil Dlí

2. Introduction to Civil Law
Dr Suzanne Kingston
School of Law An Scoil Dlí

3. Court structures

4. Court structures
• More than one set of courts

5. Court structures
• More than one set of courts
• Each with own jurisdiction

6. Court structures
• More than one set of courts
• Each with own jurisdiction
• Administrative courts

7. Court structures
• More than one set of courts
• Each with own jurisdiction
• Administrative courts
• “Ordinary” courts

8. Court structures
• More than one set of courts
• Each with own jurisdiction
• Administrative courts
• “Ordinary” courts
• Contrast common law
– Pyramid structure

9. Example: Structure of the Irish Court
System

10. Example: Structure of the Irish Court
System

11. Contrast: French court structure

12. Contrast: French court structure

13. France: Ordinary courts

14. France: Ordinary courts
• Civil courts
– Tribunaux d’instance
– Tribunaux de Grande instance (above €10,000
unless specialist jurisdiction; to be consolidated)
– Irish equivalent?

15. France: Ordinary courts
• Civil courts
– Tribunaux d’instance
– Tribunaux de Grande instance (above €10,000
unless specialist jurisdiction; to be consolidated)
– Irish equivalent?
• Commercial: tribunaux de commerce
– Disputes between traders over money
– Not career judges – lay judges elected by local
business community
– Irish equivalent?
– No separate commercial courts in all civil law
jurisdictions eg Italy

16. France: Ordinary courts
• Civil courts
– Tribunaux d’instance
– Tribunaux de Grande instance (above €10,000
unless specialist jurisdiction; to be consolidated)
– Irish equivalent?
• Commercial: tribunaux de commerce
– Disputes between traders over money
– Not career judges – lay judges elected by local
business community
– Irish equivalent?
– No separate commercial courts in all civil law
jurisdictions eg Italy
• Absorbed Ecclesiastical courts

17. France: Ordinary courts

18. France: Ordinary courts
• Employment tribunals: Conseil de prud’hommes
– Lay judges, representing employers and employees
– Irish equivalent?

19. France: Ordinary courts
• Employment tribunals: Conseil de prud’hommes
– Lay judges, representing employers and employees
– Irish equivalent?
• Variety of other courts of first instance eg social
security, disability

20. France: Ordinary courts
• Employment tribunals: Conseil de prud’hommes
– Lay judges, representing employers and employees
– Irish equivalent?
• Variety of other courts of first instance eg social
security, disability
• Courts of appeal: general jurisdiction

21. French court structure: Cour de
cassation

22. French court structure: Cour de
cassation
• Highest court of “ordinary” courts

23. French court structure: Cour de
cassation
• Highest court of “ordinary” courts
• Civil, criminal matters

24. French court structure: Cour de
cassation
• Highest court of “ordinary” courts
• Civil, criminal matters
• Origins: Tribunal de cassation
– Function to ensure courts don’t deviate from text of
legislation
– Originally courts referred doubtful questions of
construction to legislature
– This changed quickly: became proper court (cour)

25. French court structure: Cour de
cassation

26. French court structure: Cour de
cassation
• Can construe statutes

27. French court structure: Cour de
cassation
• Can construe statutes
• Can quash judgments of lower ordinary courts

28. French court structure: Cour de
cassation
• Can construe statutes
• Can quash judgments of lower ordinary courts
• Can’t substitute its view on the merits

29. French court structure: Cour de
cassation
• Can construe statutes
• Can quash judgments of lower ordinary courts
• Can’t substitute its view on the merits
• Lower court not bound to follow view in the first
instance, but bound in the second instance
– Contrast eg Corte di Cassozione in Italy

30. French Cour de cassation

31. French Cour de cassation
• Only answers questions of law, not fact

32. French Cour de cassation
• Only answers questions of law, not fact
• Structure

33. French Cour de cassation
• Only answers questions of law, not fact
• Structure
• Over 80 trial judges (conseillers)

34. French Cour de cassation
• Only answers questions of law, not fact
• Structure
• Over 80 trial judges (conseillers)
• 40 case management judges (conseillers
référendaires)

35. French Cour de cassation
• Only answers questions of law, not fact
• Structure
• Over 80 trial judges (conseillers)
• 40 case management judges (conseillers
référendaires)
• Office of the prosecutor (parquet général)
– Headed by the Chief Prosecutor (procureur général)
– Judicial officer charged with giving legal advice to Court –
civil and criminal matters
– Equivalent to Rapporteur public (formerly Commissioner
of Government) in Council of State (Conseil d’Etat)

36. French Cour de cassation
• Only answers questions of law, not fact
• Structure
• Over 80 trial judges (conseillers)
• 40 case management judges (conseillers
référendaires)
• Office of the prosecutor (parquet général)
– Headed by the Chief Prosecutor (procureur général)
– Judicial officer charged with giving legal advice to Court –
civil and criminal matters
– Equivalent to Rapporteur public (formerly Commissioner
of Government) in Council of State (Conseil d’Etat)
• Barristers (avocats) need to pass special exam

37. French Cour de cassation

38. French Cour de cassation
• 6 divisions (chambres):
– First Civil Division (première chambre civile):
individual rights, copyright and contracts
– Second Civil Division (deuxième chambre civile):
divorce, malfeasance
– Third Civil Division (troisième chambre civile):
property, urban affairs
– Business & Financial Division: corporations,
bankruptcy, business, banking and patents
– Labour Division (chambre sociale): labour disputes,
worker compensation, social security
– Criminal Division (chambre criminelle): criminal
cases

39. French Cour de cassation

40. French Cour de cassation
• Stare decisis vs jurisprudence constante

41. French Cour de cassation
• Stare decisis vs jurisprudence constante
• Style of judgments
– Contrast eg
• Irish Supreme Court
• House of Lords
• German Court

42. French court structure: Administrative
courts and Conseil d’Etat

43. French court structure: Administrative
courts and Conseil d’Etat
• Rationale for separate administrative courts
– Contrast English mandamus, quo warranto

44. French court structure: Administrative
courts and Conseil d’Etat
• Rationale for separate administrative courts
– Contrast English mandamus, quo warranto
• Conseil d’Etat: Created 1799, but not an
independent court for 90 years

45. French court structure: Administrative
courts and Conseil d’Etat
• Rationale for separate administrative courts
– Contrast English mandamus, quo warranto
• Conseil d’Etat: Created 1799, but not an
independent court for 90 years
• Reformed to add:
– Administrative tribunals (first instance)
– Administrative courts of appeal (cours
administratives d’appel, 1989)
– Contrast eg Germany, Austria: separate
administrative courts long beforehand

46. Conseil d’Etat

47. Conseil d’Etat
• 6 divisions
– 5 administrative: home affairs, finance, research,
public works, welfare
– 1 litigious
– Members are traditionally members of both
• Independence problems? ECHR

48. Conseil d’Etat
• 6 divisions
– 5 administrative: home affairs, finance, research,
public works, welfare
– 1 litigious
– Members are traditionally members of both
• Independence problems? ECHR
• Official president: Prime Minister

49. Conseil d’Etat

50. Conseil d’Etat
• Powers
– Advisory
• Obligatory consultation before legislation made
• Discretionary consultation by government in other
administrative matters (eg Islamic headscarves 1989,
International Criminal Court 1999)
– Judicial
• Rarely first instance
• Mainly appeals on point of law only
• Can be referred question for advice on points of law
by lower administrative courts

51. Conflicts of court jurisdiction?

52. Conflicts of court jurisdiction?
• Decided by Tribunal des conflits (Jurisdiction
disputes court)
– Positive conflict: eg administration considers a case
should be in administrative courts
• Préfet is told
• If préfet can’t agree with court, referred to
jurisdiction disputes court
– Similar if negative conflict ie no court thinks it’s
competent
– Mixed cases: Jurisdiction disputes court can be
asked to decide the case if courts come to
conflicting outcomes (happens rarely)

53. Conseil constitutionnel

54. Conseil constitutionnel
• Created by founders of (current) Fifth Republic
(1958 Constitution)

55. Conseil constitutionnel
• Created by founders of (current) Fifth Republic
(1958 Constitution)
• Members: les sages

56. Conseil constitutionnel
• Created by founders of (current) Fifth Republic
(1958 Constitution)
• Members: les sages
• Former presidents have right to sit

57. Conseil constitutionnel
• Created by founders of (current) Fifth Republic
(1958 Constitution)
• Members: les sages
• Former presidents have right to sit
• Others chosen by politicians:
– President of the Republic (3)
– President of the National Assembly (3)
– President of Senate (3)

58. Conseil constitutionnel

59. Conseil constitutionnel
• Decisions bind judges and unappealable

60. Conseil constitutionnel
• Decisions bind judges and unappealable
• Roles
– Supervising elections and judging any litigation
resulting from elections (eg election expenses,
eligibility of candidates)
– Judging constitutionality of statutes, international
treaties
• Before promulgation
• Eg Corsica decision (1991) – acknowledging existence
of separate Corsican nation contravenes Article 1
French Constitution (“France is an indivisible, secular,
democratic and social Republic”)
• Eg Carbon tax (December 2009)
– Judging ability of President to be able to exercise
functions

61. Conseil constitutionnel

62. Conseil constitutionnel
• Who can refer to Conseil?
– President, PM, President National Assembly/Senate,
60 members of National Assembly/Senate
– Or (since March 2010) if compatibility of statute
with constitution is raised by party in case and
referred by Cour de cassation or Conseil d’Etat

63. Conseil constitutionnel
• Who can refer to Conseil?
– President, PM, President National Assembly/Senate,
60 members of National Assembly/Senate
– Or (since March 2010) if compatibility of statute
with constitution is raised by party in case and
referred by Cour de cassation or Conseil d’Etat
• Limits of conseil’s powers
– Not acts
• Passed after referendum
• Amending Constitution
• Not referred to Conseil
• Incorporating European directives into French law
– Not compatibility of French act with EU law

64. German court structure

65. German court structure
• 5 separate branches of court (contrast France)

66. German court structure
• 5 separate branches of court (contrast France)
• Ordinary courts (civil and criminal)
– First instance (local) courts: Amtsgerichte
– Regional courts: Landgerichte (original jurisdiction on
appeal)
– Regional appellate courts: Oberlandesgerichte (points of
law)

67. German court structure
• 5 separate branches of court (contrast France)
• Ordinary courts (civil and criminal)
– First instance (local) courts: Amtsgerichte
– Regional courts: Landgerichte (original jurisdiction on
appeal)
– Regional appellate courts: Oberlandesgerichte (points of
law)
• Labour courts
– Judge consults with employer and employee
representatives

68. German court structure
• 5 separate branches of court (contrast France)
• Ordinary courts (civil and criminal)
– First instance (local) courts: Amtsgerichte
– Regional courts: Landgerichte (original jurisdiction on
appeal)
– Regional appellate courts: Oberlandesgerichte (points of
law)
• Labour courts
– Judge consults with employer and employee
representatives
• Tax courts

69. German court structure
• 5 separate branches of court (contrast France)
• Ordinary courts (civil and criminal)
– First instance (local) courts: Amtsgerichte
– Regional courts: Landgerichte (original jurisdiction on
appeal)
– Regional appellate courts: Oberlandesgerichte (points of
law)
• Labour courts
– Judge consults with employer and employee
representatives
• Tax courts
• Social security courts

70. German court structure
• 5 separate branches of court (contrast France)
• Ordinary courts (civil and criminal)
– First instance (local) courts: Amtsgerichte
– Regional courts: Landgerichte (original jurisdiction on
appeal)
– Regional appellate courts: Oberlandesgerichte (points of
law)
• Labour courts
– Judge consults with employer and employee
representatives
• Tax courts
• Social security courts
• Administrative courts

71. German court structure

72. German court structure

73. German court structure

74. German court structure
• Lay involvement in commercial matters and
labour matters

75. German court structure
• Lay involvement in commercial matters and
labour matters
• Highest ordinary court: Bundesgerichtshof –
Federal Court of Justice

76. German court structure
• Lay involvement in commercial matters and
labour matters
• Highest ordinary court: Bundesgerichtshof –
Federal Court of Justice
• Each branch has its own federal court

77. German court structure
• Lay involvement in commercial matters and
labour matters
• Highest ordinary court: Bundesgerichtshof –
Federal Court of Justice
• Each branch has its own federal court
• Plus Federal Constitutional Court

78. German court structure

79. German court structure
• Administrative courts
– First instance, High Courts in each state (Länder)
– Federal Administrative Court
(Bundesverwaltungsgericht)
• Review on point of law
• “Revision” possible to lower judgment (contrast
cassation)
– All non-constitutional public law matters unless
expressly assigned by statute to fiscal/social courts
– Eg asylum, planning, environmental matters

80. German court structure
• Administrative courts
– First instance, High Courts in each state (Länder)
– Federal Administrative Court
(Bundesverwaltungsgericht)
• Review on point of law
• “Revision” possible to lower judgment (contrast
cassation)
– All non-constitutional public law matters unless
expressly assigned by statute to fiscal/social courts
– Eg asylum, planning, environmental matters
• Contrast Conseil d’Etat:
– No advisory functions
– Wholly independent from executive

81. Constitutional courts

82. Constitutional courts
• State constitutional courts (Länder)

83. Constitutional courts
• State constitutional courts (Länder)
• All courts subject to review by Federal
Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht,
BVerfG)

84. Constitutional courts
• State constitutional courts (Länder)
• All courts subject to review by Federal
Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht,
BVerfG)
• Bundestag (parliament), Bundesrat (federal
council) each choose half of members

85. Constitutional courts
• State constitutional courts (Länder)
• All courts subject to review by Federal
Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht,
BVerfG)
• Bundestag (parliament), Bundesrat (federal
council) each choose half of members
• 12 year non renewable term

86. Constitutional courts
• State constitutional courts (Länder)
• All courts subject to review by Federal
Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht,
BVerfG)
• Bundestag (parliament), Bundesrat (federal
council) each choose half of members
• 12 year non renewable term
• Bundestag delegates to judges election board

87. Constitutional courts
• State constitutional courts (Länder)
• All courts subject to review by Federal
Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht,
BVerfG)
• Bundestag (parliament), Bundesrat (federal
council) each choose half of members
• 12 year non renewable term
• Bundestag delegates to judges election board
• Age of judges: 40-68

88. German court structure

89. German court structure
• Conflicts of jurisdiction?

90. German court structure
• Conflicts of jurisdiction?
• Court where case is filed decided whether it has
jurisdiction

91. German court structure
• Conflicts of jurisdiction?
• Court where case is filed decided whether it has
jurisdiction
• If decides no jurisdiction, may transfer cases to
another court

92. German court structure
• Conflicts of jurisdiction?
• Court where case is filed decided whether it has
jurisdiction
• If decides no jurisdiction, may transfer cases to
another court
• Contrast:
– France: Tribunal des conflits
– Italy: Court of cassation decides conflicts