Chief Justice

Chief Justice

The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong, the Supreme Court of India, the Supreme Court of Pakistan, the Supreme Court of Nepal, the Supreme Court of Ireland, the Supreme Court of New Zealand, the High Court of Australia, the Supreme Court of the United States, or provincial or state supreme courts. In England and Wales and Northern Ireland, the equivalent position is the Lord Chief Justice and in Scotland the equivalent is the Lord President of the Court of Session.

The Chief Justice can be appointed to the post in a variety of different ways, but in many nations the presiding position is commonly given to the senior-most justice in the court, while in the United States it is often the President's most important political nomination, subject to approval by the United States Senate. Although the title of this top American jurist is, by statute, Chief Justice of the United States, the term "Chief Justice of the Supreme Court" is often used unofficially.

In some states the Chief Justice has another title, e.g. president of the Supreme Court. In other cases the title of Chief Justice is used, but the court has another name, e.g. the Supreme Court of Judicature in colonial (British) Ceylon, the Court of Appeals in Maryland.

Contents

Competence

The Chief Justice is often responsible for serving as chair during private supreme court deliberations, and often is first to voice their opinion. However, most Supreme Courts are non-hierarchical, meaning the Chief Justice does not necessarily have any direct power of control over the actions of the other judges.[citation needed] Their personal ruling is equal in weight to the rulings of any associate judges on the court.

In several countries, the Chief Justice is second in line to the Office of President or Governor General, should the incumbent die or resign, or third, if there is a Vice President or Lieutenant Governor General. For example, the Chief Justice of Canada, if the Governor General of Canada is unable to perform his or her duties, performs the duties of the Governor General.

Apart from their intrinsic role in litigation, they may have additional competences, such as "swearing in" high officers of state; for instance, the Chief Justice of the United States traditionally administers the oath of office at the inauguration ceremony of the President of the United States, as does the Chief Justice of South Africa at the inauguration of the President of South Africa.

List of Chief Justice positions

See also

Sources and references


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • chief justice — chief justiceship. 1. Law. the presiding judge of a court having several members. 2. (caps.) Official title, Chief Justice of the United States. the presiding judge of the U.S. Supreme Court. See table under Supreme Court. [1685 95] * * *… …   Universalium

  • chief justice — n: a chief judge of a usu. higher level court; specif often cap: the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court chief jus·tice·ship n Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996 …   Law dictionary

  • Chief justice — Chief jus tice The presiding justice, or principal judge, of a court. [1913 Webster] {Lord Chief Justice of England}, The presiding judge of the Queen s Bench Division of the High Court of Justice. The highest judicial officer of the realm is the …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Chief justice — Justice Jus tice (j[u^]s t[i^]s), n. [F., fr. L. justitia, fr. justus just. See {Just}, a.] [1913 Webster] 1. The quality of being just; conformity to the principles of righteousness and rectitude in all things; strict performance of moral… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Chief Justice — steht für Oberster Richter oder Gerichtspräsident eines bestimmten Gerichts oder eines Landes. siehe etwa: Chief Justice of the United States, das nominelle Oberhaupt der Bundesgerichte der Vereinigten Staaten Chief Justice (Ghana), der Oberste… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Chief Justice — Chief Justices N COUNT; N TITLE A Chief Justice is the most important judge of a court of law, especially a supreme court. ...Chief Justice Marshall …   English dictionary

  • chief justice — n the most important judge in a court of law, especially the US Supreme Court …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • chief justice — noun count the most senior judge in a court of law, especially the U.S. Supreme Court …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • chief justice — n. the presiding judge of a court made up of several judges …   English World dictionary

  • Chief Justice — Juge en chef Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Chief Justice (que l on peut traduire en français par Juge en chef) est le titre du président de la Cour suprême dans de nombreux pays du… …   Wikipédia en Français

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