The chief justice of Liberia is the head of the judicial branch of the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

of the

Republic of Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of Liberia.

Appointment and term

Article 54(c) of the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

stipulates that the chief justice is appointed by the president of Liberia and confirmed by the Senate. Per Article 68, eligibility for the position of chief justice requires that the candidate: *be a citizen of Liberia; *be of good moral character; *have been a counselor of the Supreme Court Bar for at least five years. Article 71 states that the chief justice "shall hold their offices during good behavior." According to Article 72(b), the chief justice must retire from office upon reaching the age of 70, though he may remain on the Court long enough to render judgment or perform any judicial duties regarding matters he began addressing before reaching that age.

Duties

In addition to acting as head judge on the Supreme Court and managing all subordinate courts, the Constitution provides several duties to the chief justice. In the case of impeachment of the president or

vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

, Article 43 mandates that the chief justice preside over the trial in the Senate. Additionally, Article 53(a) requires the chief justice to swear in the president in front of a

joint session A joint session or joint convention is, most broadly, when two normally separate decision-making groups meet, often in a special session or other extraordinary meeting, for a specific purpose. Most often it refers to when both houses of a bicamer ...

of the

Legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...

Removal from office

The chief justice may be removed from office upon impeachment by the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

and conviction by the Senate. Article 71 of the Constitution stipulates that the chief justice may only be removed in the event of "misconduct, gross breach of duty, inability to perform the functions of their office, or conviction in a court of law for

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

, bribery or other infamous crimes." In the event of an impeachment trial of the chief justice in the Senate, the president of the Senate presides over the proceedings. Only one chief justice,

Chea Cheapoo Chea Job Cheapoo, Sr. (2 November 1942 – 16 September 2020) was a Liberian politician who served as the 15th Chief Justice of Liberia from July 1987 until his impeachment and removal from office on December 2 of that year. His full rights were ...

, has been removed in this manner.

List of chief justices

Source: ; Status

Notes

References

* Dossen, J. J.
''Supreme Court reports: Cases argued and determined in the Supreme Judicial Court of the Republic of Liberia, January, 1861-January, 1907, Volume 1''

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chief Justice Of Liberia

Presidents President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

1847 establishments in Liberia