Source: http://rjoi.fr/index.php?id=7377
Timestamp: 2019-04-24 11:59:43+00:00

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1The Republic of Mauritius [hereafter ‘Mauritius’] is a group of islands in the South West of the Indian Ocean, consisting of the main island of Mauritius, Rodrigues and several outer islands located at distances greater than 350 km from the main island. Mauritius has been successively under Dutch, French and British administration. It became independent of Britain on 12th March 1968 and acceded to the status of Republic within the Commonwealth on 12th March 1992 (Mauritius in Figures 2015, Statistics Mauritius, http://statsmauritius.govmu.org/English/Publications/Pages/Mauritius-in-Figures.aspx).
2In Mauritius, English is the official language. French and Creole are commonly used. Hindi and Bhojpuri are also spoken.
3The population is comprised of 1, 262, 862 inhabitants.The Republic of Mauritius is a secular state. However, the population is constituted of several religions thus making the state a multi-cultural one.
6During the French colonial period (1715 - 1810), and before the “Code civil” came into force in Mauritius, the inhabitants of the island of French origin were governed by the “Coutume de Paris” and the “Ordonnances de Colbert”, the slaves were governed by the “Code noir” and the other inhabitants had, with few restrictions (donations, wills, liberal professions, etc.), the same rights as the inhabitants of French origin (P. R. DOMINGUE, The Historical Development of the Mixed Legal System of Mauritius during the French and British Colonial Periods, Law, Management and Social Sciences, Research Journal, Volume 4, 2002, p. 63). The French Civil Code of 1804 was promulgated in Mauritius in 1805 and was re-promulgated in 1808. The French Code of Civil Procedure of 1807 was promulgated in Mauritius in 1808 and the French Code of commerce of 1807 was promulgated in 1809 (P. R. DOMINGUE, ibid, p. 64).
7In 1810, the British took over the island. According to article 8 of the Treaty of Capitulation of 1810, confirmed by the Treaty of Paris of 1814, the inhabitants of Mauritius were authorized to preserve their religion, laws and customs. It is important to note that the French Penal Code of 1810 was not promulgated in Mauritius during the French colonial rule. Rather, it was promulgated in 1838 (Ordinance n° 6/1838) under the British colonial rule with article 8 of the Treaty of Capitulation (P. R. DOMINGUE, ibid, pp. 65-66). However, a few decades after the British took possession of the island, the courts’ structure started to change. In 1836, the Judges of the Court of Appeal were vested with the power to make rules of the Court for the proper administration of justice, and Rules of British inspiration were promulgated in 1837 (P. R. DOMINGUE, ibid, pp. 66-67).
8By Ordinance n° 2 of 1850, the Supreme Court of Mauritius was established and the creation of district courts was allowed. The Supreme Court replaced the “Cour d’Appel” and the “Tribunal de Première Instance”. Furthermore, the Supreme Court was vested with the same powers, authority and jurisdiction as its English counterpart at that time (P. R. DOMINGUE, ibid, p. 67). The Mauritian Supreme Court, thus, has adhered to the doctrines of binding precedent and stare decisis, in spite of article 5 of the Mauritian Civil Code. In 1852 and 1853, a Criminal Procedure Ordinance of British inspiration was adopted in Mauritius. In 1881, the Evidence Ordinance was promulgated, and according to its section 15, the British law of evidence for the time being shall prevail (P. R. DOMINGUE, ibid, p. 69). During the British colonial period, many provisions of the French “Code de commerce” were repealed and replaced by legislation of British origin (P. R. DOMINGUE, ibid, pp. 69 s.).
9As a result of its historical background, the Mauritian legal system is a mixed legal system where both the French and English colonial powers left their print (http://www.govmu.org/English/ExploreMauritius/Pages/History.aspx). Indeed, some parts of Mauritian legal system are inspired by French Law and the other parts are of British origin. The substantive law in Mauritius is often derived from the French Law (“Code civil français”, “Code penal français” of 1810 and “Code de commerce français”). However, the Public Law which is part of Mauritian substantive law is of British inspiration. The Mauritian Constitution of 1968 confirms this assertion. The laws on trade, commerce, shipping, banking, companies, etc. are also of British and Commonwealth tradition (see e. g.: Banking Act of 2004, Companies Act of 2001, and Merchant Shipping Act of 2007). The procedural law in Mauritius and the law of evidence mainly stem from English Law. This is the consequence of the fact that the courts structure in Mauritius is of Common Law tradition (see: the Courts Act 1945) (P. R. DOMINGUE, ibid, p. 62).
10It is to be noted that British Common Law is in some areas such as contempt of court, judicial review and evidence, the direct source of Mauritian Law. Some written laws, such as the Courts Act of 1945, refer to the Common Law (section 187 on evidence of husband and wife and section 188 A on admissibility of sound recording). Moreover, according to section 16 of the abovementioned Act, the Supreme Court of Mauritius is a Court of Equity, vested with the power to administer justice in all cases where no legal remedy is provided by any other law.
common Law principles and Equity.
12Moreover, the doctrines of binding precedent and stare decisis are applicable in Mauritius. Thus, a decision of a superior court (Supreme Court) will be binding for the future on an inferior court and sometimes will be binding on the court which gave the decision (P. R. DOMINGUE, Introduction to Law and Legal Methods, Unit 2, p. 9). The Mauritian lawyer has to search and find the essential part of the decision containing the answer of a court to the legal issue raised by litigators and which is called the ratio decidendi. This essential part of the decision constitutes the binding legal precedent.
13It is important to underline the fact that Mauritian Law as a mixed legal system is an autonomous legal system, even though it was and is currently influenced by French Law, English Law and the laws of some Commonwealth countries. The decisions of English courts, French Courts and the courts of other Common Law jurisdictions are taken into account by our courts, but those decisions are not formal sources of Mauritian law. Mauritian courts will often quote decisions of English, French and other courts, where appropriate, in order to make as strong as possible their legal reasoning, and especially when Mauritian legislation has been borrowed from English or French legislation. However, there is no legal obligation imposed upon Mauritian courts to follow the decisions of French or English Courts. (see e. g. Mangroo v. Dahal (1937) MR 43).
18 (c) for such benefit as is mentioned in paragraph (a) and also for any such purpose as is mentioned in paragraph (b).
211100-1 Est appelée fiducie - ou trust - l' ensemble de droits et d' obligations dont fait l'objet un patrimoine (le "bien fiduciaire") qui est affecté dans l'intérêt des bénéficiaires ou dans un but determiné, et qu'une personne (le "fiduciaire") s' oblige à détenir, gérer et administrer suivant cette affectation.
231100-2 Le bien fiduciaire formé de biens et de droits transférés en fiducie, constitue un patrimoine d'affectation autonome et distinct de celui du constituant, du fiduciaire ou du bénéficiaire, sur lequel aucun d' entre eux n'a de droit réel.
24The State of Mauritius is a Republic and is defined in section 1 of the Constitution as “a sovereign democratic State”.
25The Constitution of Mauritius of 1968 provides for a number of institutions namely the executive power, the legislative power and the judicial power.
26The executive power resides in the Government of Mauritius which consists of a Prime Minister and a Deputy Prime Minister appointed by the President (section 59 (1) of the Constitution). The Prime Minister is the Head of Government There is also an Attorney General (who does not have to be a member of the Assembly), and there will be such other Ministers of the Government as may be prescribed by Parliament or, established by the President. The number of offices of Minister, other than the Prime Minister, shall not be more than 24 (section 59 (2)).
27The President has the power to remove the Prime Minister from office, if there is a resolution of no confidence in the Government passed by the Assembly and the Prime Minister does not within 3 days resign from his office (section 60 (1)). In that case, the office of the Ministers will expire (section 60 (4)).
28A Minister of the Government may be removed when the President, upon advice of the Prime Minister, decides so (section 60 (4).
29The Cabinet consists of the Prime Minister and the other Ministers (section 61 (1)) and its main function shall be to advise the President; the Cabinet shall be collectively responsible to the Assembly for any advice given to the President and for all things done by or under the authority of any Minister (section 61 (2)).
30The President of Mauritius, upon advice of the Prime Minister, may, by directions in writing, assign to the Prime Minister or any other Minister responsibility for the conduct of any business of the Government (section 62).
31When the President so requests, the Prime Minister shall submit for the consideration of the Cabinet any matter on which a policy decision has been taken by a Minister but which has not been considered by the Cabinet (section 64 (3).
32It is important to underline the fact that when the President dissolves Parliament otherwise than under the proviso to section 57 of the Constitution, the Prime Minister, may by motion, request the Supreme Court to enquire into the decision (section 64 (5) (b)).
33The Prime Minister shall keep the President fully informed concerning the general conduct of the Government of Mauritius and shall furnish the President with all appropriate information (section 65).
34When a Minister has been charged with responsibility for the administration of any department of Government, he shall exercise general direction and control over that department (section 68).
35In Mauritius, the legislative power is held by Parliament. The Parliament of Mauritius consists of the President and a National Assembly (section 31 (1)). The Assembly consists of members who are individuals elected through the general elections (section 32 (2)).
36The Supreme Court shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine the questionwhether any person has been validly elected as a member of the Assembly (section 37 (1)).The application to the Court may be made by any person entitled to vote in the election towhich the application relates or by any person who was a candidate at that electionor by the Attorney-General (section 37 (2)).
37Parliament may make laws for the peace, order and good government of Mauritius (section 45).
38The judicial power is maintained by a system of courts where the highest court is the Supreme Court which acts as a court of first instance as well as an appellate court.
39Indeed, the Supreme Court of Mauritius has unlimited jurisdictionto hear and determine any civil or criminal proceedings under any law other than adisciplinary law (section 76 (1) of the Constitution). In order to ensure the independence of the Judiciary, the Constitution provides that the office of a judge shall not be abolished while any person is holding that office unless he consents to its abolition (section 76 (2)). A Judge of the Supreme Court may be removed from office only for inability to perform the functions of his office (e. g. infirmity of body or mind) or for misbehaviour (section 78 (2)). He will be removed by the President upon advice of the Judicial Committee (section 78 (3)).
40There shall be a Court of Civil Appeal and a Court of Criminal Appeal for Mauritius, each of which shall be a division of the Supreme Court (section 80 (1) of the Constitution). The Judges of the Court of Civil Appeal and the Court of Criminal Appeal are the judges of the Supreme Court (section 80 (3)).
41It also fulfils the role of being the guardian of the Constitution and hence it is vested with the power to look into constitutional matters. According to section 2 of Mauritian Constitution, the Constitution is the supreme law of Mauritius, and if any other law is inconsistent withthe Constitution, that other law shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be declared void by the Supreme Court (see also section 83 and 84 of the Constitution).
42Further appeal is possible to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Under section 81 (1) of the Mauritian Constitution, an appeal shall be automatically possible against the decisions of the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (possible since Mauritius became a British colony in 1810) when there are final decisions, in any civil or criminal proceedings, on questions as to the interpretation of this Constitution; where the matter in dispute on the appeal to the Judicial Committee is of the value of 10,000 rupees or upwards or where the appeal involves, directly or indirectly, a claim to or a question respecting property or a right of the value of 1,000 rupees or upwards; in such other cases as may be prescribed by Parliament, provided that there is no other judicial remedy.
43The leave (permission) of the Court of Appeal or of the Supreme Court to appeal to the Privy Council is necessary if the Court is of opinion that the question involved in the appeal is one of great general or public importance; in such other cases as may be prescribed by Parliament (section 80 (2)).
44Finally, the Judicial Committee has its own right to grant special leave to appeal from the decision of any court in any civil or criminal matter if it thinks that it is appropriate (section 81 (5)).
45Mauritius is a parliamentary democracy.
50(iii) the unity of the diverse Mauritian nation is maintained and strengthened.
51The President is elected by the Assembly on a motion made by the Prime Minister and supported by the votes of a majority of all the members of the Assembly. (Section 28 (2) of the Constitution).
52In the exercise of his functions under the Constitution or any other law, the President shall, generally, act in accordance with the advice of the Cabinet or of a Minister acting under the general authority of the Cabinet (section 64 (1)).
53It has to be reminded that the President has the power to remove the Prime Minister from office, if there is a resolution of no confidence in the Government passed by the Assembly and the Prime Minister does not within 3 days resign from his office (section 60 (1)). The Cabinet of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the Assembly for any advice given to the President and for all things done by or under the authority of any Minister (section 61 (2)).
54Additionally, according to section 57 of the Constitution, the President, upon advice of the Prime Minister, may atany time dissolve Parliament where the Assembly passes a resolution that it has no confidence in the Government and the Prime Minister does not within 3 days either resign from his office or advise the President to dissolve Parliament; where the office of Prime Minister is vacant and the President considers there is no prospect of his being able within a reasonable time to appoint to that office a person who can command the support of a majority of the members of the Assembly.
55In Mauritius, the members of the National Assembly are elected through general elections.
56The present National Assembly comprises 62 elected members (the 20 constituencies of Mauritius returning 3 members each whilst Rodrigues, the 21st constituency, returns 2 members). Furthermore, 8 additional seats are allocated to non-elected party candidates in order to ensure a fair and adequate representation of each community and party in the Assembly.
57The qualifications for the membership to the Assembly are laid down in section 33 of the Constitution. According to the Constitution, there exist the Electoral Boundaries Commission and the Electoral Supervisory Commission (section 38). The Electoral Boundaries Commission shall make recommendations for any alterations to the boundaries of the constituencies as appear to the Commission to be required so that the number of inhabitants of each constituency is as nearly equal as is reasonably possible. The Electoral Supervisory Commission shall have general responsibility for and shall supervise the registration of electors for the election of members of the Assembly and the conduct of elections of such members and the Commission shall have such powers and other functions relating to such registration and such elections as may be prescribed. Furthermore, the office of the electoral commissioner is provided for by the Constitution under section 40 of the Constitution. The Electoral Commissioner shall have such powers and other functions relating to such registration and elections as may be prescribed, and he shall keep the Electoral Supervisory Commission fully informed concerning the exercise of his functions and shall have the right to attend meetings of the Commission and to refer to the Commission for their advice or decision any question relating to his functions.
59Section 42 of the Constitution also prescribes the qualifications of electors and section 44 regulates the right to vote.
61The Rodrigues Regional Assembly has been created following an amendment made to the Constitution where Chapter VIA has been added to provide for its creation and functioning.
63Mauritius has ratified a number of human rights conventions at the United Nations level as well as the African Union’s level. Some of these rights have been incorporated in the domestic legal system namely in the Constitution and a number of statutory law.
65Section 17 ensures that the enforcement of those rights is made possible at the level of the Supreme Court when there is an allegation that any of the rights in sections 3 to 16 “has been, is being or is likely to be contravened in relation to him”. According to the Supreme Court (Constitutional Relief) Rules 2000, it is necessary to state with precision the provision of the Constitution breached or likely to be breached. See Thakoree v Public Service Commission [2011 SCJ 388].
66However, the Supreme Court shall not exercise its powers under this subsection if it is satisfied that adequate means of redress for the contravention alleged are or have been available to the person concerned under any other law (Section 17(2)). See Poongavanam v Director of Public Prosecutions [1993 MR 298], Vert v District Magistrate of Plaines Wilhems & Ors [1993 MR 28],Bardwaz Jekarahjee v The State of Mauritius [2010 SCJ 60] and Marie & ors v The State of Mauritius [2011 SCJ 269].
67From the Government’s perspective, the mandate in relation to Human rights is within the Human Rights Unit of the Prime Minister’s Office.
68Furthermore, there are a number of institutions created as independent bodies to look into human rights issues namely the National Human Rights Commission, the Ombudsman Office, the Ombudsperson for Children’s Office, and the Equal Opportunities Commission.
78In Mauritius, there are several formal sources of law.
79The Constitution of 1968 provides that it is the Supreme law of Mauritius, and if any other law is inconsistent withthe Constitution, that other law shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be declared void (section 2). This supreme law regulates several important issues and themes, such as the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual, citizenship, the office of the President and the Vice-President of Mauritius, Parliament, Legislation and Legislative process, the Executive, the Judicature, etc.
80There are also written laws in Mauritius which are either in English or in French. In the field of civil and private law, the laws are currently written in French (“Code civil”, “Code de commerce” and “Code de procédure civile”). The Penal Code (Criminal Code Act of 1838) is written both in French and in English. There are also many other written laws in English (e. g. Employment Relations Act of 2008, Employment Rights Act of 2008, Notaries Act of 2008, Sale of Immovable Property Act of 1864, etc.).
81Currently, written laws are adopted in Mauritius through Acts of Parliament (known as statutory law or primary legislation) and regulations (secondary legislation).
83Before an Act of Parliament comes into force, there has to be a Bill passed by the National Assembly and assented to by the President of Mauritius (section 46 (1) of the Constitution).
84There are several stages that every Bill must go through before it is adopted by the National Assembly.
the Third Reading (the review of the Bill in its final form; no possibility to submit further amendments).
85Regarding Ordinary Bills, a simple majority of Members of Parliament present and voting at the end of the Second Reading is required to pass them (section 53 (1) of the Constitution). For the Bills amending the Constitution, a qualified majority is required (3/4 of all the Members of the Assembly, sometimes 2/3).
86The Bill adopted in the National Assembly has to be assented to by the President (sect. 46 (1)). In some cases the President can withhold his assent. However, when the Bill is reconsidered by the Assembly and passed with or without amendment, the President shall give his assent.
laws which derive their validity directly from the Constitution (sections 118 and 120 of the Constitution).
89Case-law as a source of lawconsists of the decisions of the Mauritian Supreme court which are binding for the future on inferior courts (district courts and Intermediate Court) (see : Ardé v. Baissac (1864) MR 83). The decisions of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council are binding on the Supreme Court of Mauritius to the extent that they are applicable to Mauritius (see: Société United Docks v. Government of Mauritius (1981) MR 500 : "decisions of the Privy Council are binding upon us when they apply Mauritian law"). Judicial precedents are a formal source of law in Mauritius due to section 2 of the Ordinance n° 2 of 1850, which established the Supreme Court, vesting it with the same powers, authority, and jurisdiction that are possessed and exercised by Her Majesty's Court of Queen's Bench in England. Moreover, section 4 of that Ordinance, was to the effect that the Supreme Court and the judges thereof shall sit, and proceed to and conduct, and carry on, business in the same manner as the Court of Queen's Bench and the judges thereof (see also : DPP v. Mootoocarpen 1988).
90The decisions of French courts (“Cour de cassation” in particular) and English courts (High Court of Justice in particular – except in those areas where Common Law or Equitable rules have been made applicable in Mauritius by the Mauritian Parliament) are not formal sources of Mauritian Law (Mangroo v. Dahal 1937). They can constitute persuasive authority only (see : P.-R. DOMINGUE, Finding out the legal rule applicable to a given situation, Introduction to Law and Legal Methods, Unit 2, pp. 12-13).
92The Common Law of England is a direct source of Mauritian Law in some cases such as contempt of court, judicial review and evidence (see : P.-R. DOMINGUE, Finding out the legal rule applicable to a given situation, Introduction to Law and Legal Methods, Unit 2, pp. 10-11). Moreover, under section 16 of the Courts Act of 1945, the Supreme Court of Mauritius is a Court of Equity, vested with the power to administer justice in all cases where no legal remedy is provided by any other law.
93International conventions are not directly applicable in Mauritius after their ratification. They have to be incorporated in Mauritian law through an Act of Parliament incorporating part or the whole of the convention (e. g. The Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards Act 2001). This is due to the sovereignty of Parliament resulting in Mauritius being a dualist state. The Supreme Court has confirmed this in a number of cases, for e.g. in Pierce v Pierce [1998 SCJ 397] where the Court provided as follows: “Though Mauritius has acceded to that Convention [Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction], the provisions of the whole or part of that Convention have not been implemented in our national laws, unlike, for example, the Convention Abolishing the Requirements of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents Act which gave the force of law in Mauritius to the Convention on that matter signed at the Hague on 5 October1961and published in [GN No. 14 of 1966]. Consequently, […], suffice it to say that that Convention is not part of our law and that this Court is not bound to give effect to its provisions”.
95In respect to interpretation of international law instruments the Supreme Court confirmed that domestic legislation should, if possible, be construed so as to conform to international instruments to which the State is a party. See Matadeen & Anor v. Pointu & Ors (Privy Council Appeal no. 14 of 1997 at page 17).
96The highest purely Mauritian judicial authority is the Supreme Court of Mauritius which can act as a court of first instance as well as an appellate court. As a court of first instance, the Supreme Court of Mauritius has unlimited jurisdictionto hear and determine any civil or criminal proceedings under any law other than adisciplinary law. In order to ensure the control of the decisions made by the Supreme Court as the court of first instance, there is a Court of Civil Appeal and a Court of Criminal Appeal for Mauritius, each of which is a division of the Supreme Court. Moreover, the Supreme Court of Mauritius has jurisdiction to hear and determine the appeals against the decisions of the Intermediate Court and district courts. In Mauritius, there are no specialized administrative courts. The mechanism of judicial review is used before the Supreme Court of Mauritius. However, there is the Bankruptcy Division of the Supreme Court having jurisdiction to deal with all matters of bankruptcy, insolvency or the winding up of companies (section 62 (1) of the Courts Act of 1945).
97The Supreme Court of Mauritius also has jurisdiction in respect to constitutional issues (sections 83 and 84 of the Constitution).
98The official language in the Supreme Court of Mauritius is English (section 14 (1)). However, where a person appearing before the Court satisfies the Court that he does not possess a competent knowledge of the English language, he may give his evidence or make any statement in the language with which he is best acquainted (section 14 (2)) (eg. French or Creole).
99In civil cases, every proceeding in the Supreme Court, save for those provided by other sections of the Courts Act, will be heard and disposed of by a single judge (section 35). However, the Chief Justice may, either proprio motu or on application in writing made to him by any party to a case stating the reasons for such application, direct that any case shall be heard by 2 or more judges, having regard to the magnitude of the interests at-stake or the importance or intricacy of the questions of fact or law involved (section 36). In criminal cases, when the law requires to take the case before the full court, 3 or 5 judges shall hear the case (section 39). It is important to note that one single sitting can be held for the dispatch, at the same time, of criminal business and civil business (section 40). Save as otherwise expressly provided in any other enactment, appeals to the Supreme Court shall be heard before at least 2 judges (section 70).
100By virtue of the Supreme Court (Mediation) Rules 2010, mediation has been made possible in the judicial process within the Supreme Court. According to section 2(1), the “rules shall apply to such civil suit, action, cause or matter which has been brought and is pending before the Supreme Court as the Chief Justice may deem appropriate to refer for mediation before a Judge of the Supreme Court”. Furthermore, paragraph 2 provides that “[w]ithout prejudice to the generality of paragraph (1), any party to a civil suit, action, cause or matter which has been brought and is pending before the Supreme Court may apply to the Chief Justice for same to be referred for mediation”. The Rules also provide for the ‘Mediation Judge’ who has been given powers to act as a mediator.
101In Mauritius there is also the Intermediate Court which is the judicial power inferior to the Supreme Court. The Intermediate Court has civil jurisdiction in all civil cases where the sum or matter in dispute does not exceed the prescribed amount, exclusive of interest and costs (section 104). In general, every case before the Intermediate Court shall take place before one Magistrate (section 85 (1). However, the President of the Intermediate Court may, either proprio motu or on application in writing made to him by any party to a case stating the reasons for such application, direct that any case shall be heard by 2 or more Magistrates, having regard to the magnitude of the interests at stake or the importance or intricacy of the questions of fact or law involved (section 85 (2)).
102According to section 104 A of the Courts Act, a District Court shall have jurisdiction in any civil action, where the sum claimed or matter in dispute does not exceed 25,000 rupees.
103There also exists a Court of Rodrigues where the Magistrate for Rodrigues has within Rodrigues the same powers and jurisdiction as are conferred on every District Magistrate in Mauritius. He has also jurisdiction to hear and dispose of any case referred to in section 112 (d) and (f) of the Courts Act which in Mauritius, would upon a reference by the Director of Public Prosecution, be cognizable by the Intermediate Court.
104The language to be used in the Intermediate Court or in any District Court shall be English, but any person may address the court in French (section 131 (1)).
105Furthermore, an Industrial Court (section 3 of the Industrial Court Act) whereby it has exclusive civil and criminal jurisdiction to try any matter arising out of the enactments set out in the 1st schedule of the Act or of any regulations made under those enactments (which relate to labour laws). The Industrial Court is composed of two Magistrates who are appointed by the Judicial and Legal Service Commission (section 86 of the Constitution). Any person against whom judgment has been given may appeal subject to the same conditions as appeals from a decision of a District Magistrate (section 11 Industrial Court Act).
106Finally, according to the Mauritian Constitution, there is the possibility to appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (United Kingdom) against the decisions of the Supreme Court. Under section 81 (1) of Mauritian Constitution, an appeal shall be automatically possible against the decisions of the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council when there are final decisions, in any civil or criminal proceedings, on questions as to the interpretation of this Constitution; where the matter in dispute on the appeal to the Judicial Committee is of the value of 10,000 rupees or upwards or where the appeal involves, directly or indirectly, a claim to or a question respecting property or a right of the value of 1,000 rupees or upwards; in such other cases as may be prescribed by Parliament, provided (in all cases) that there is no other judicial remedy.
107The leave (permission) of the Court of Appeal or of the Supreme Court to appeal to the Privy Council is necessary if the Court is of opinion that the question involved in the appeal is one of great general or public importance; in such other cases as may be prescribed by Parliament (section 80 (2)).
108Finally, the Judicial Committee has its own right to grant special leave to appeal from the decision of any court in any civil or criminal matter if it thinks that it is appropriate (section 81 (5)).
110The Law in Mauritius can be categorized into Public Law and Private Law. Public Law is often of British inspiration. Constitutional law is regulated by the Constitution of 1968. Administrative law is mainly regulated by the rules of English Common Law (Judicial Review). However, the substantive criminal law is currently inspired (with few exceptions) by French Law (French Penal Code of 1810). Many other aspects of Mauritian Public Law are regulated by statutory law in English (The Education Act of 1957, Central Water Authority Act of 1971, Waste Water Management Authority Act of 2000, etc.).
111The Mauritian Civil Law is mainly inspired by French Law. Thus, the Mauritian Civil Code, “Code de Commerce” and Code of Civil Procedure are written in French and influenced by French Law. However, other parts of Private Law are regulated by Acts of Parliament written in English. For example, the labour laws in Mauritius are constituted of the Employment Relations Act 2008 and the Employment Rights Act 2008.
241In Mauritius, the Supreme Court is constituted of Judges, whether the Supreme Court acts as the court of first instance or an appellate court. Every Judge has criminal, civil and administrative jurisdiction. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall be appointed by the President of Mauritius acting after consultation withthe Prime Minister. The Senior Puisne Judge shall be appointed by the President, acting in accordancewith the advice of the Chief Justice.The Puisne Judges shall be appointed by the President, acting in accordance withthe advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission.No person shall be qualified for appointment as a Judge of the Supreme Courtunless he is, and has been for at least 5 years, a barrister entitled to practise beforethe Supreme Court.
242In the Intermediate Court and district courts there are Magistrates having civil and criminal jurisdiction.
243The Director of Public Prosecutions is in charge of prosecuting criminal offences.
244Mauritian barristers are gathered in the Mauritius Bar Association which is committed to serving its members, to constantly protect, promote and enhance the interests of the profession as a whole, enhance diversity and advance the rule of law in Mauritius. Membership to the Bar Association is compulsory for all Barristers (http://www.mauritiusbarassociation.com/index.php/about-us).
245Mauritian solicitors are gathered in the Mauritius Law Society.
246The profession of barristers and solicitors in Mauritius is regulated by the Law Practitioners Act of 1984. According to section 3, no person shall provide legal services unlesshis name has been entered on the Roll as a barrister, an attorney ornotary; andhe is a memberin the case of a barrister, of the Mauritius Bar Association,in the case of an attorney, of the Mauritius Law Society orin the case of a notary, of the Association of Notaries.
247Mauritian notaries are authorized to draw up any deed which the parties are required by law, or on their own initiative, to invest with the character of authenticity attaching to the documents of a public authority, to keep any notarial deed drawn up by them or deposited with them in their custody and to deliver a certified copy of a deed drawn up by them. The profession of notaries in Mauritius is regulated by the Notaries Act of 2008. This Act addresses the issues such as exercise of profession, notarial deeds and certified copies, association of notaries, professional conduct, notaries’ fees, etc. The notaries are gathered in the Association of Notaries which is a body corporate and the objects of the Association are to safeguard, maintain and promote the interests of its members,uphold the honour, dignity, reputation and independence of its members,further the interests of its members in connection with the practice of their profession, regulate the profession of a notary and ensure compliance with the Code or the rules ofpractice of the profession, etc.
248In collaboration With Professeur Jonas KNETSCH, université Jean Monnet Saint-Étienne.

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