By the end of the 2003 war, the judicial system was in shambles and its credibility in ruins. The lack of human, material and financial resources seriously hampers the administration and administration of justice. A crucial element in the long-term reconstruction of Liberia has therefore been the restoration of the rule of law and the restoration of confidence in the Government. For justice to be done, citizens must understand and exercise their rights, and those who administer justice must be properly trained, equipped and equipped. In Bong County, Liberia, members of a theatre group perform an educational skit on marriage and property rights. The Carter Center is working with the Government of Liberia to help the country rebuild its justice system after a long and devastating civil war. (Photo: The Carter Center/K. Hinton) The primary laws are amended by the Model Penal Code of 1956. See section 14.80 “Sexual Offences and Related Offences Act”.
This is the new rape law introduced in March 2005. Volume 1 of 1974 of the Revised Code of the Laws of Liberia contains both civil and criminal legislation. For detailed information on Liberian legal status, please visit the Cornell Law Library at the following website: library.lawschool.cornell.edu/WhatWeHave/SpecialCollections/LiberianLaw/index.cfm The results on the resolution of hypothetical disputes indicate that the Liberian population is familiar with the judicial system. A majority cited the courts to deal with cases of murder, rape, land disputes, and injuries. In practice, however, only a minority of respondents attempted to resolve disputes in court. Of the land grabbing cases since the end of the war, only 9 per cent and 4 per cent respectively have been brought before the magistrates` and district courts, compared to 39 per cent for village chiefs, 22 per cent for elders and 23 per cent for individuals. Despite limited knowledge of the formal justice system by many Liberians, respondents demonstrated good legal knowledge. The survey asked selected adult Liberians a series of questions about Liberian law. Most respondents correctly stated that under Liberian law, a woman has the right to own the property of her husband or family member after the death of her husband or family member (87 per cent), that a man must provide for her illegitimate child (88 per cent), that forcing a woman to have sex is a form of rape (84 per cent) and that domestic violence against one`s own wife is a crime (83 per cent). Conversely, only a minority incorrectly stated that Liberian law supports Sassywood`s proceedings (14%),[1] or that payment is necessary to bring a case before the police (16%) or the formal court (20%). [2] Several questions have been drafted to examine the Community`s access to and perception of the formal judicial system.
Most respondents reported little or no (41%) knowledge of the formal justice system. Liberia. 2021. Website. www.loc.gov/item/guide-to-law-online/liberia/. Immediately after the war, the Access to Justice Project worked with the Ministry of Justice to identify the need for rural justice, develop and implement messages for civic education, and fill immediate short-term gaps to strengthen the formal justice system. The judicial system currently suffers from chronic capacity constraints. The lack of human, material and financial resources has seriously hampered the administration and administration of justice.
For justice to be done, those who administer justice must be properly trained, equipped and resourced. Assignment of judges to circuit courts: Each circuit judge, except judges appointed as alternate judges, shall preside as resident judge of the circuit court to which he or she has been appointed. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court appoints a circuit judge on a rotating basis for each quarterly session of the various circuits, and if all cases of a circuit court are disposed of before the end of a quarterly session, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court has the power to reappoint the circuit judge assigned to him to sit in addition to the circuit judge for the remainder of the quarterly session in another circuit. It is currently used when it considers that such a reassignment will facilitate the expeditious processing of court cases. Figure 21: Access to the Formal Court and the Court of Chiefs Liberia`s legal system is closely aligned with United States laws and institutions and, in the absence of specific legal provisions, is based on the common law of the United States or the United Kingdom. For marine mortgages, the legal requirements are based on those of the states of New York and Delaware. Major international financial institutions advocate loans to finance Liberian-registered vessels in the form of registered mortgages, as they draw on experience to ensure that Liberian laws and practices guarantee the guarantee of the loan. Disputes may even be resolved in the jurisdiction specified in the mortgage deed or in the United States (in the courts of New York or elsewhere) where the courts have determined that they have jurisdiction over matters relating to Liberian law. The specialized courts of the Liberian judicial system consist of the following courts: only 28 per cent described their access to the justice system as easy, while 45 per cent described it as difficult and 16 per cent as not easy at all.
In line with these figures, only 63% of the population said they knew where to access the courts, while 53% said they knew how to do so. In contrast, a majority of the population knew how to access higher courts in their village or town and dispute resolution mechanisms: more than 80% knew where and how to access these systems, and 78% said access was easy. Interestingly, the perception of access did not differ much from county to county. In particular, interviewees in the urban environment of Greater Monrovia did not report significantly more awareness of or access to the formal court system than other respondents, although a majority cited the courts as the best place to resolve almost all hypothetical types of disputes (see “General Dispute Resolution” above). A crucial element in Liberia`s post-war reconstruction is the restoration of the rule of law. The 2008 Poverty Reduction Strategy (PDF) stresses the need to strengthen and improve the effectiveness and integrity of legal and judicial institutions: a similar set of proposals was used to assess Liberians` perception of the formal justice system. Overall, the results show that perceptions are quite negative. Most agreed that “it is too expensive to go to court” (75%), and only a minority agreed that “judgments are the same for everyone” (23%) or that “judges treat everyone the same” (28%). The results suggest a general lack of trust in judges and the judicial system in general. On average, knowledge and perception of the justice system differed little across counties.
At the invitation of the government, the Carter Center conducted an access to justice project to address these critical needs, particularly with a focus on historically marginalized rural communities. The district court of the county where a juvenile court or district court has jurisdiction over court decisions or orders. A monthly court and a competent probate court may also have appellate jurisdiction over decisions or orders of the juvenile court. Jurisdiction: The Supreme Court exercises original jurisdiction in cases involving ambassadors, ministers, and in cases involving a country as a party. The Supreme Court is also the final arbiter in constitutional matters and exercises its final appellate jurisdiction in all cases handed down by the registration courts (district and specialized courts), decisions of Supreme Court judges presiding over chambers, requests for compensation and extraordinary orders, unregistered courts, administrative authorities, autonomous bodies or other authorities. both legally and factually.