Court

The government of Haiti GOH) has passed almost as many constitutions as it has survived coup d'etats. Haiti's current Constitution, passed in 2012, is the 23rd one written into law.

The first Constitution of Saint-Domingue in 1801 appointed General Toussaint L'Ouverture as ruler for life. It also put an end to slavery, democratized hiring practices, and prohibited all religions except Catholicism. The 1805 Constitution allowed all forms of religious faith and approved reverse-race discrimination, calling all citizens black. The 1807 Constitution removed the reverse-race discrimination clause.

In 1816, the 1806 Constitution was revived, declaring President Alexandre Pétion President for Life. It also gave him unilateral power over Parliament. But under Jean-Baptiste Riché, the 1816 Constitution was put into effect again.

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The former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier did not play his cards well with the head of the court of appeals, magistrate Jean Joseph Lebrun. He defied the judge order to appear in court on Thursday to face charges of corruption and human-rights violations during his 15-year rule and did not show up, sending his attorney instead, Reynold Georges. However, the judge who was not happy about that on Thursday summoned Jean-Claude Duvalier to appear in court.

Jean-Claude Duvalier was scheduled to attend a hearing to determine whether he should again face charges for human rights abuses committed during the 15 years of his regime.

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Haiti's court system is basically designed after the French system of civil law, the Roman Law and the Napoleonic Code. It is divided into four levels. The highest level is the Court de Cassation, which is also known as the Supreme Court. Under it are the Courts of Appeals, Courts of First Instance and Justice of the Peace Courts. Each level hast its own kinds of cases to hear and deal with.

The Court of Cassation is composed of a president, vice-president and ten judges. The Supreme Court president is usually chosen and appointed by the country's president. There are certain requirements for Supreme Court judges. One has to be at least 30 years old and should have a decade of law practice. Only judges who have served as a judge or a public lawyer for seven years are qualified for the Supreme Court seat. The highest court deals with matters involving law and decree unconstitutionality.

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