On the 17th of December the People’s Supreme Court held a high-level seminar on the draft Presidential Ordinance on Administrative Case Proceedings. President of the People’s Supreme Court, Mr Khampha Sengdara, chaired the seminar which was attended by Vice Ministers, Provincial and District Governors, as well as senior legal experts.
Mr Khampha stated that “ An administrative court checks that government acts are consistent with the laws. Now all citizens will be able to defend their rights if they have not been respected by public authorities. Up to now, these cases often end up in the National Assembly, which is not the appropriate venue for the resolution of such disputes. ”
Mr Khamphan Bounphakhom, Vice President of the Supreme Court, presented on the progress of the draft bill and underlined that “ The establishment of an administrative court is an important step in the development of the rule of law, combating corruption and ensure greater trust and confidence for investors which promotes economic growth.”
The administrative jurisdiction will be a 3 tier jurisdiction, first instance, appellate and cassation. An administrative chamber will be established in the Peoples Supreme Court in Vientiane , an appellate court in the regional courts and a first instance administrative court in all provincial courts, setting up as such a judicial structure to safeguard the peoples rights against wrongdoings of the government authorities.
Discussions during the seminar focused on the scope of the Presidential Ordinance as well as the rights and powers that the administrative chamber would have in hearing and resolving disputes.
The high-level consultation seminar was supported by the Institute for Legal Support and Technical Assistance (ILSTA) from Luxembourg, which has been supporting this consultative process since September 2016 and provided technical assistance, international expertise and financial support.
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