11. Judges, judicial independence and the legal profession

Independence

Section 120(3): In the exercise of judicial power the Judiciary is subject only to the Constitution and the law, and is not subject to the control or direction of any other person or authority.

Appointment

The Chief Justice and judges: Judges of the superior courts are appointed by the President acting on the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission and subject to the approval of Parliament.

Qualifications (s.135): A person must have been entitled to practise as counsel in Sierra Leone for not less than twenty years for the Supreme Court, fifteen years for the Court of Appeal and ten years for the High Court.

Tenure

Good behaviour (s.137): Judges hold office during good behaviour.

Retirement: Under the 1991 text a judge may retire at sixty and must vacate office at sixty-five, but may stay up to three months to finish cases already begun. Check whether these ages have since been amended.

Removal: A judge can be removed only for inability or stated misconduct, after investigation by a tribunal and a resolution supported by two-thirds of the Members of Parliament.

The Judicial and Legal Service Commission

Role (s.140): The Commission, chaired by the Chief Justice, advises on judicial appointments and handles appointments and discipline of judicial and legal officers.

The Attorney-General

Section 64: The Attorney-General and Minister of Justice is the principal legal adviser to the Government, appointed from persons qualified to be Justices of the Supreme Court, with audience in all courts except local courts.

The legal profession

The Bar and the Bench: Lawyers in Sierra Leone are admitted as barristers and solicitors. The Bench refers to the judges and magistrates. Legal practice is regulated under the Legal Practitioners Act 2000 and the Sierra Leone Bar Association.