Chương II Luật tổ chức Toà án nhân dân 2014: Toà án nhân dân tối cao

Chapter II

THE SUPREME PEOPLE’S COURT

Section 1. DUTIES, POWERS AND ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE SUPREME PEOPLE’S COURT

Article 20. Duties and powers of the Supreme People’s Court

1. The Supreme People’s Court is the highest judicial body of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

The Supreme People’s Court shall review according to cassation or reopening procedure in accordance with the procedural law judgments and decisions of courts which have taken legal effect and are protested against.

2. To supervise the adjudicating work of other courts, except cases prescribed by a law.

3. To make overall assessment of adjudicating practices of courts, ensuring the uniform application of law in trial.

4. To train and retrain judges, assessors and other staffs of people’s courts.

5. To manage people’s courts and military courts organizationally in accordance with this Law and relevant laws, ensuring independence of courts from one another.

6. To submit to the National Assembly draft laws and resolutions; to submit to the National Assembly Standing Committee draft ordinances and resolutions in accordance with law.

Article 21. Organizational structure of the Supreme People’s Court

1. The organizational structure of the Supreme People’s Court consists of:

a/ The Judicial Council;

b/ The assisting apparatus;

c/ Training institutions.

2. The Supreme People’s Court has the Chief Justice, Deputy Chief Justices, judges, examiners, court clerks, other civil servants, public employees and employees.

Article 22. Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court

1. The number of members of the Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court must be between thirteen and seventeen, including the Chief Justice, Deputy Chief Justices being judges of the Supreme People’s Court and other judges of the Supreme People’s Court.

2. The Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court has the following duties and powers:

a/ To review according to cassation or reopening procedure in accordance with the procedural law judgments and decisions of courts which have taken legal effect and are protested against;

b/ To issue resolutions to guide courts in uniformly applying law;

c/ To select its cassation trial decisions and judgments and decisions of courts which have taken legal effect and are of standard nature, summarize and develop them into court precedents and publicize court precedents for courts to study and apply in trial;

d/ To discuss and give its opinions on reports of the Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court on people’s courts’ work for submission to the National Assembly, National Assembly Standing Committee and President;

dd/ To give its opinions on draft laws and resolutions for submission to the National Assembly, and draft ordinances and resolutions for submission to the National Assembly Standing Committee;

e/ To discuss and give its opinions on draft legal documents falling under the promulgating competence of the Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court and draft legal documents to be jointly promulgated by the Supreme People’s Court and related agencies in accordance with the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents.

3. A meeting of the Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court shall be attended by at least two-thirds of its total members. Decisions of the Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court shall be voted for by more than half of its total members.

The Procurator General of the Supreme People’s Procuracy and the Minister of Justice shall attend meetings of the Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court where resolutions of the Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court are discussed and adopted.

4. Cassation or reopening trial decisions of the Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court are the highest and cannot be protested against.

Article 23. Organization of trial by the Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court

1. The Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court shall conduct trial according to cassation or reopening procedure with a trial panel composed of 5 judges or all judges of the Supreme People’s Court.

2. A cassation or reopening trial with a trial panel composed of 5 judges or all judges of the Supreme People’s Court shall be conducted in accordance with the procedural law.

Article 24. Assisting apparatus of the Supreme People’s Court

The assisting apparatus of the Supreme People’s Court consists of departments and equivalent units. The Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court shall submit to the National Assembly Standing Committee for approval the organization, duties and powers of units in the assisting apparatus.

Article 25. Training institutions of the Supreme People’s Court

1. Training institutions of the Supreme People’s Court have the duty to train and retrain judges, assessors and other staffs of people’s courts.

2. The establishment of training institutions of the Supreme People’s Court must comply with law.

Section 2. CHIEF JUSTICE AND DEPUTY CHIEF JUSTICES OF THE SUPREME PEOPLE’S COURT

Article 26. The Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court

1. The Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court shall be elected, relieved from duty or dismissed by the National Assembly at the proposal of the President.

The term of office of the Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court must follow the term of the National Assembly.

2. Upon the expiration of the term of the National Assembly, the incumbent Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court shall continue to perform his/her duties until the National Assembly of the new legislature elects a new Chief Justice.

Article 27. Duties and powers of the Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court

1. To organize the adjudicating work of the Supreme People’s Court; to organize the implementation of the principle that judges and assessors shall conduct trials in an independent manner and obey only the law.

2. To chair meetings of the Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court.

3. To protest according to cassation or reopening procedure against legally effective judgments and decisions of people’s courts in accordance with the procedural law.

4. To submit to the President his/her opinions on cases in which convicts apply for commutation of capital punishment.

5. To direct the overall assessment of adjudicating practices; drafting and issuance of resolutions of the Judicial Council of the Supreme People’s Court to ensure the uniform application of law in trial; summarization, development and publicization of court precedents.

6. To direct the drafting of laws, ordinances and resolutions to be submitted by the Supreme People’s Court to the National Assembly and National Assembly Standing Committee; to issue or jointly issue legal documents according to his/her competence in accordance with the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents.

7. To submit to the National Assembly for approval the appointment, relief from duty and dismissal of judges of the Supreme People’s Court; to propose the President to appoint, relieve from duty or dismiss Deputy Chief Justices of the Supreme People’s Court and judges of other courts.

8. To appoint, relieve from duty or dismiss other staffs under Clause 1, Article 35; Clause 1, Article 36; Clause 1, Article 42; Clause 1, Article 43; Clause 1, Article 47; Clause 1, Article 48; Clause 1, Article 60; Clause 1, Article 61; Clause 1, Article 62; Clause 1, Article 63; and Clause 1, Article 64 of this Law and other posts in the Supreme People’s Courts, except those under the competence of the President to appoint, relieve from duty or dismiss.

9. To decide on rotation, transfer or secondment of judges under Clause 2, Article 78; Clause 2, Article 79; and Clause 2, Article 80 of this Law, except judges of the Supreme People’s Court.

10. To submit to the National Assembly Standing Committee for decision the establishment or dissolution of superior people’s courts; people’s courts of provinces and centrally run cities; people’s courts of rural districts, urban districts, towns, provincial cities and the equivalent; military courts of military zones and the equivalent; regional military courts; territorial jurisdiction of superior people’s courts and establishment of other specialized tribunals of people’s courts when finding it necessary.

To submit to the National Assembly Standing Committee for approval the organizational structure, duties and powers of the assisting apparatus of the Supreme People’s Court.

11. To decide on organization of specialized tribunals under Point b, Clause 1, Article 38 and Clause 1, Article 45; to stipulate the organizational structure, duties and powers of units of the assisting apparatus of people’s courts under Article 24; Clause 2, Article 34; Clause 2, Article 42; Article 46; Clause 4, Article 51; Clause 3, Article 55; and Clause 3, Article 58 of this Law.

12. To perform the duties and exercise the powers prescribed in Clause 6, Article 66; Clauses 3 and 4, Article 70; Clause 7, Article 75; Clause 4, Article 88; Clause 3, Article 92; and Clause 3, Article 93 of this Law.

13. To decide on allocation of payrolls, number of judges and budget funds for operation of people’s courts; to set payrolls of military courts after reaching agreement with the Minister of National Defense.

14. To inspect the implementation of payrolls, management of staffs, management and use of budget funds and physical facilities of people’s courts.

15. To organize the training and retraining of judges and assessors and other staffs of people’s courts.

16. To be answerable and report his/her work to the National Assembly; when the National Assembly is in recess, to be answerable and report his/her work to the National Assembly Standing Committee and President; to answer questions and respond to recommendations of National Assembly deputies.

17. To perform the duties and exercise the powers prescribed in the procedural law; to settle other matters in accordance with law.

Article 28. Deputy Chief Justices of the Supreme People’s Court

1. Deputy Chief Justices of the Supreme People’s Court shall be appointed by the President from among judges of the Supreme People’s Court. The term of office of Deputy Chief Justices of the Supreme People’s Court is 5 years from the date of appointment.

Deputy Chief Justices of the Supreme People’s Court shall be relieved from duty or dismissed by the President.

2. Deputy Chief Justices of the Supreme People’s Court shall assist the Chief Justice in performing his her duties as assigned by the latter. When the Chief Justice is absent, a Deputy Chief Justice authorized by the Chief Justice shall lead the work of the Court. Deputy Chief Justices shall be answerable to the Chief Justice for their assigned tasks.

3. To perform the duties and exercise the powers prescribed by the procedural law.