Superior court

In

Superior Courts in Canada exist at the federal,^[1] provincial^{[2][3][4][5][6]} and territorial levels.

The provincial and territorial superior courts of original jurisdiction are courts of general jurisdiction: all legal matters fall within their jurisdiction, unless assigned elsewhere by statute passed by the appropriate legislative authority.^[7] Their jurisdiction typically includes civil lawsuits involving contracts, torts, property, and family law. They also have jurisdiction over criminal prosecutions for indictable offences under the Criminal Code of Canada.^[8] They also hear civil appeals from decisions of the provincial and territorial "inferior" courts, as well as appeals from those courts in summary conviction matters under the Criminal Code. They also have jurisdiction of judicial review over administrative decisions by provincial or territorial government entities such as labour boards, human rights tribunals and licensing authorities.^[9]

The superior courts of appeal hear appeals from the superior courts of original jurisdiction, as well as from the inferior courts and administrative tribunals. The jurisdiction of the superior courts of appeal are entirely statutory. The details of their jurisdiction will vary depending on the laws passed by the federal government and the particular province or territory.

All judges of the superior courts are appointed by the federal government. Judges of provincial superior courts are appointed under the authority of the Constitution Act, 1867,^[10] while judges of the territorial superior courts are appointed under the authority of their respective territorial acts passed by the federal Parliament. The judges of the Federal Courts are appointed by the federal government under the authority of the Federal Courts Act.^[11]

Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, the Court of Final Appeal,^[12] the Court of Appeal^[13] and the Court of First Instance^[14] (the latter two form the High Court of Hong Kong^[15]), are all superior courts of record.

South Africa

The general superior courts of South Africa are the

The Supreme Court of Appeal is solely an appellate court, hearing appeals from the High Courts. The Constitutional Court is primarily an appellate court, hearing appeals on constitutional matters from the Supreme Court of Appeal or in some cases directly from the High Courts. The Constitutional Court also occasionally acts as a court of first instance in certain cases involving the constitutionality of laws and government actions.

There are also specialist superior courts with exclusive jurisdiction over certain matters; these include the

The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, the High Court of England and Wales, and the Crown Court of England and Wales are all superior courts of record.^{[17][18][19][20]}

United States

In a number of jurisdictions in the

The term "superior court" raises the obvious question of superior to what. Formerly, many jurisdictions had inferior trial courts of limited jurisdiction such as municipal courts, traffic courts, and justice of the peace courts, so it was natural to call the next level of courts "superior." However, some states, like California, have unified their court systems. In California, all lower courts were absorbed into the

• television program in the 1980s.^[24]

See also

• Judiciary
• Judiciary of Australia
• Ordinary court
• Small claims court
• Superior Court of Justice
• Supreme court
• United States District Court

References

1. ^ Federal Courts Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. F-7, ss. 3 and 4, as amended by S.C. 2002, c. 8, s. 16
2. ^ Alberta: Court of Appeal Act, R.S.A. 2000, c. C-30, s. 2(1); Court of Queen's Bench Act, R.S.A. 2000, c. C-31, s. 2(1).
3. ^ British Columbia: Court of Appeal Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 77, s. 2(1); Supreme Court Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 443, s. 3(1)
4. ^ Manitoba: The Court of Appeal Act, C.C.S.M. c. C240, s. 3; The Court of Queen's Bench Act, C.C.S.M. c. C280, s. 2
5. ^ Ontario: Courts of Justice Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. C-43, s. 2 (Court of Appeal); s. 11 (Superior Court of Justice)
6. ^ Saskatchewan: The Court of Appeal Act, S.S. 2000, c. C-42.1, s. 3(1); The Queen's Bench Act, 1998, S.S. 1998, c. Q-1.01, s. 3(1)
7. ^ Valin v. Langlois (1879), 5 App. Cases 115 (P.C.); Attorney General of Canada v. Law Society of British Columbia, [1982] 2 S.C.R. 307.
8. ^ Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46.
9. ^ "Administrative Tribunals in Canada | The Canadian Encyclopedia". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved 2020-07-29.
10. ^ Constitution Act, 1867, s. 96.
11. ^ Federal Courts Act, s. 5.2.
12. ^ Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal Ordinance, s.3
13. ^ High Court Ordinance, 13(1)
14. ^ High Court Ordinance, s. 12(1)
15. ^ High Court Ordinance, s.3
16. ^ Jacobson, Paul. "An introduction to our courts and court procedure". Retrieved 15 April 2012.
17. ^ Constitutional Reforms Act 2005, 2005, c. 4, s. 40
18. ^ Senior Courts Act 1981, 1981, c. 54, s. 15(1)
19. ^ Senior Courts Act 1981, 1981, c. 54, 19(1)
20. ^ Senior Courts Act 1981, 1981, c. 54, s. 45(1)
21. ^ District of Columbia Courts
22. ^ "Traffic Adjudication Appeal Form" (PDF). dccourts.gov.
23. ^ "Superior Court: State of Maine Judicial Branch".
24. Internet Movie Database

External links

Look up superior court in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• California Courts-the Judicial Branch of California
• Los Angeles Superior Court