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The Court of Justice Generally - Flores - Coggle Diagram
The Court of Justice Generally
- Flores
Judges and Magistrates
A judge cannot communicate with any suitor, lawyer etc, if not in court as the idea is that they are independent -
Article 8
A judge has to take an oath of allegiance before execution of their office -
Article 10
Applies also to magistrates -
Article 15
A judge cannot act as an arbitror, accept tutorship or other administration activity except within the Judicial Studies Committee or as assigned by law -
Article 9
The President of Malta is to assign judges their duties and may transfer them -
Article 11
- article regards the distribution of duties and judges
A judge or magistrate cannot carry out any other profession, business or trade unless it is a judicial office on any international Court or tribunal or any international adjudicating body, the office of examiner at the UoM -
Article 16
Language
Attur / konvenut / plaintiff / defendant - still used but out of place since we dropped writ of summons and statement of defense.
Applicant - rikorent
Respondent - l-intimat
Today we file a rikors. Before we used to use writ of summons but this has been substituted.
Malta does not follow the theory of precedent, so they can reach a different conclusion, except CoA who have a moral authority.
The Maltese language is the language of the Maltese courts and it prevails over the English version of Maltese court (except in one exception of the EU). -
Article 21
If a person does not understand the language, for oral proceedings he will have an interpreter or interpreted by the court -
Article 21(2)
Affidavits are to be in the language used by the person then filled with a translation and confirmed on oath by translator -
Article 21(3)
Formation of the Courts
Courts are either inferior of superior -
Article 2
Superior Courts -
Article 3
Presided by judges
CoA
Not all cases appeal in front of the CoA
Constitutional Court
It is exceptional that cases appeal here
Civil Court (court per excellence)
The jurisdiction of superior court are generally in Malta -
Article 5
The jurisdiction of superior court are generally in Malta -
Article 5
Besides the Chief Justice, the justice of Superior Courts shall be 13 or as more as prescribed by President of Malta -
Article 6(2)
The Chief Justice and President of the CoA and all other judges shall sit in the superior courts as by law provides -
Article 6(1)
Inferior Courts -
Article 4
Presided by magistrates -
Article 7(1)
CoM (Malta) for Island of Malta
CoM (Gozo) for Island of Gozo and Comino
Case normally ensues in the court where the respondent normally resides
If one files a case in wrong court, it will be thrown out - can be done by judge / magistrate since most articles are on public order
The jurisdiction of Gozo and the inferior courts have a limited jurisdiction - normally on civil maters and on value -
Article 5
Chief Justice may choose one magistrate to be Senior Magistrate until a specified time or until another magistrate is so designated -
Article 7(2)
Senior Magistrate shall perform such duties and functions as assigned by Chief Justice -
Article 7(3)
The court of justice of civil jurisdiction are exclusively vested with the judicial authority in civil matters within the jurisdiction of the tribunals of Malta -
Article 2(3)
If it is an item of small value, then the cliam would be filled in front of the Small Claims Tribunal - special law regulating such
COCP has to be read in-conjunction with special laws
The rule is that one would go in front of the superior courts unless by law its jurisdiction is limited. If it is limited then one would have to follow what the law dictates and therefore one may go to an inferior Court depending on the amount.
There will always be an appeal
One never goes from a superior court to an inferior court unless in exceptional cases where the case starts in front of the CoM and then is a partial appeal.
From FHCC ones goes to Court of Appeal and from inferior court one goes to superior court.
Cases
Cases - causes in COCP
Judgements - Sentenzi
Cases shall be tried in public -
Article 22
Certain cases can be heard behind closed doors - e.g. family cases
Parties can ask for case to be held behind closed doors in which case the order of the court shall be recorded -
Article 22 (2) & (3)
Once a case is heard in public, judgment is then delivered in public and operative part is to be read out -
Article 23
Today, since there is a big delay in court legislator included an amendment that a judge can read out only the decide not the whole case.
Registries Where One Would File Acts
To open a case one has to file it in the registry (either of them)
Registry of superior court
In superior courts all cases which do not fall into inferior courts would have to be filled
Can have the issue of not having acts which would reach judges in time.
Registry of inferior court
Very efficient since has less cases and can manage better
In registries one finds legal procurators
Normally LPs are the ones assisting lawyers by filling acts
Lawyers cannot file any pleadings in the superior courts
Lawyers can file pleadings in inferior courts
Number of registries, place of registries, the acts filled in such registry dictated by Minister responsible for justice dictates it -
Article 27
Minister will also designate a public officer to be responsible for each registry and determines the functions performed by such person and all matters ancillary -
Article 27(3)
One has to file in the appropriate registry
They are both in one big hall but they are different registries
Archives
In the archives the all acts are deposited -
Article 28
There is more than one archive and earlier years are filed in different places in Malta rather than Valletta - the Minister prescribed how many there are and what they hold -
Article 28