Supreme Court of the Republic of China
Encyclopedia
The Supreme Court of the Republic of China ( is the court of last resort in the Republic of China
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...

, although matters regarding interpretation of the Constitution and unifying the interpretation of laws and orders are decided by the Constitutional Court of the Judicial Yuan
Judicial Yuan
The Judicial Yuan is one of five branches of the government of the Republic of China in Taiwan and serves as the highest judicial organ in Republic of China. Its Justices of the Constitutional Court , with 15 members, is charged with interpreting the Constitution...

.

History

In 1927, the government of the Republic of China renamed Dali Yuan (大理院) to the Supreme Court
Supreme court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of many legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, instance court, judgment court, high court, or apex court...

. In 1949, the Supreme Court was moved to Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...

, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

, where the Kuomintang
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...

 government retreated after the Chinese Civil War
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...

.

Introduction

The Organic Law of the Court states that the judicial system shall be composed of the Supreme Court, High Courts, and District Courts
District Courts (Republic of China)
In the law of the Republic of China, the District Courts are the ordinary trial courts of general jurisdiction.- Courts :There are currently 19 District Courts on the island of Taiwan: Taipei (台北), Panchiao (板橋), Shihlin (士林), Taoyuan (桃園), Hsinchu (新竹), Miaoli (苗栗), Taichung (台中), Nantou (南投),...

, in which the system of “three-level and three-instance” is used. The Supreme Court is the court of last resort for civil and criminal cases. Except for civil cases involving amounts not exceeding NT $1,500,000 and petty offences enumerated in Article 376 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, any civil or criminal case may be appealed to the Court.

More specifically, the Court exercises jurisdiction over the following cases:
  • appeals from judgments of High Courts or their branches as courts of first instance in criminal cases;
  • appeals from judgments of High Courts or their branches as courts of second instance in civil and criminal cases;
  • appeals from rulings of High Courts or their branches;
  • appeals from judgments or rulings rendered by the civil court of second instance by the summary procedure, the amounts in controversy exceeding NT $1,500,000, and with permission granted in accordance with specified provisions;
  • civil and criminal retrials within the jurisdiction of the court of third instance;
  • extraordinary appeals; or
  • any other case as specified by laws.

Procedure

Cases are forwarded to either the Civil Section or the Criminal Section, which will record the case according to the year, class of case, as well as order of receipt. The case is reviewed by the Rules for Initial Review of Civil and Criminal Cases. After review, if the Court finds the case is defective, it will send the case back to the original court or order the party to amend the defects. If the Court finds the case to be in good form, the case is then sent to the Case Assignment Subsection, which will assign the case to a certain justice. Cases before the Supreme Court are heard and decided by a panel of five judges, with the Division Chief Judge acting as the presiding judge and the chairperson in deliberation.

The Court decides only issues of law, and must base its decision on the facts ascertained in the judgment of the court of second instance (High Court). An appeal may be made to the Court only on the grounds that the original judgment is in violation of law or order. Documentary review proceedings are the norm, but if necessary, the presiding justice hear oral arguments in which issues of law are debated.

The Supreme Court has a President, who is of the special appointment rank and who is in charge of the administrative affairs of the entire court and who acts concurrently as a Judge.

Presidents

  • 謝瀛洲(1948-1966)
  • 查良鑑(1966-1968)
  • 陳樸生(1968-1972)
  • 錢國成(1972-1987)
  • 褚劍鴻(1987-1993)
  • 王甲乙(1993-1996)
  • 葛義才(1996-1998)
  • 林明德(1998-2001)
  • 吳啟賓(2001-2007)
  • 楊仁壽(2007-)

Prominent Judges

  1. Chang, Chin-lan (張金蘭) was the first female supreme court judge of the Republic of China.

See also

  • Constitution of the Republic of China
    Constitution of the Republic of China
    The Constitution of the Republic of China is the fundamental law of the Republic of China . Drafted by the Kuomintang as part of its third stage of national development , it established a centralized Republic with five branches of government...

  • Six Codes
    Six Codes
    Six Codes, , refers to the six main legal codes that make up the main body of law in Republic of China , Republic of Korea and Japan ....

  • Law in Taiwan
    Law in Taiwan
    This page is a history of the legal regime in Taiwan.- Aboriginal Law :The earliest majority inhabitants of Taiwan were probably from Southeast Asia and are racially similar to the Malay group who inhabit Malaysia and Indonesia...

  • Law schools in Taiwan
    Law schools in Taiwan
    In Taiwan, law is primarily studied as an undergraduate program resulting in a Bachelor of Law . It is said that this degree is equivalent to the 'first' professional degree in law . This is the reason why most Taiwan Universities have departments of law rather than schools of law...

  • Ministry of Justice (Republic of China)
    Ministry of Justice (Republic of China)
    The Ministry of Justice of the Republic of China is a ministerial level governmental body of the Executive Yuan. It is responsible for carrying out various judicial functions in the Republic of China .-Organization:...

  • Law of the Republic of China
    Law of the Republic of China
    Law of the Republic of China is mainly based on the civil law system. The legal structure is codified into the Six Codes:#the Constitution #the Civil Code #the Code of Civil Procedure and associated laws#the Criminal Code...

  • Judicial Yuan
    Judicial Yuan
    The Judicial Yuan is one of five branches of the government of the Republic of China in Taiwan and serves as the highest judicial organ in Republic of China. Its Justices of the Constitutional Court , with 15 members, is charged with interpreting the Constitution...

  • Taiwan High Prosecutors Office
    Taiwan High Prosecutors Office
    Taiwan High Prosecutors Office is located in Taipei, Taiwan. The territorial jurisdiction covers the jurisdictions of Taipei, Shihlin, Banchiao, Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Keelung, and Yilan District Prosecutors Office.- General :...

  • District Courts (Republic of China)
    District Courts (Republic of China)
    In the law of the Republic of China, the District Courts are the ordinary trial courts of general jurisdiction.- Courts :There are currently 19 District Courts on the island of Taiwan: Taipei (台北), Panchiao (板橋), Shihlin (士林), Taoyuan (桃園), Hsinchu (新竹), Miaoli (苗栗), Taichung (台中), Nantou (南投),...


External links


Further reading

Chang-fa Lo, The Legal Culture and System of Taiwan, (Kluwer Law International 2006).
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