SUPREME COURT OF NORWAY SUPREME COURT ANNUAL REPORT 2015 CONTENTS CONTENTS The Supreme Court in its bicentenary year 2015 Page 4 Summary of Supreme Court cases and procedure Page 6 The Supreme Court’s Bicentenary Page 7 - “HONOURABLE GENTLEMEN!” Page 8 - 200 years in two minutes – It began in a library Page 10 - The Bicentenary Meeting Page 12 Bicentenary celebration at Akershus castle Page 14 Open house in the Supreme Court Page 16 Justice Tjomsland captivates his audience Page 18 “The most difficult thing I have ever done as a researcher” Page 20 A powerful meeting with the lions Page 21 Law Truth Justice Page 22 Supreme Court commemorative stamp Page 23 A selection of cases from 2015 Page 24 The Supreme Court and International Law Page 29 Supreme Court Justices Page 31 Justice Liv Gjølstad looks back Page 33 The Supreme Court's administration Page 36 Rizwana Yedicam informs Page 41 New faces Page 42 County tour 2015 Page 43 Outside the courtroom Page 44 Statistics Page 46 Cover page: The Justice Building in Christiania 1903, which is now the Supreme Court Building. Photo: Unknown photographer Oslo Museum 2 3 Photo: Morten Brakestad SUPREME COURT SUPREME THE SUPREME COURT IN ITS BICENTENARY YEAR Under the Norwegian Constitution of 1814, the entertainment, etc. outside the building. year, judiciary service has carried on as usual, and Supreme Court is one of our three constitutional The event attracted an enthusiastic crowd. You can as such, 2015 has been a busy year with many bodies. However, it took time to establish a read more about the various events in the important cases. The judiciary service was rounded functional Supreme Court, and it was not until annual report. off just before Christmas with the delivery of an almost a year after the Constitution was drawn up, important plenary judgment concerning a very that the Supreme Court met for its first court A bicentenary is a good opportunity to look back at topical and important administrative issue – session and delivered its first judgment. This took the history of the Supreme Court, analyse the immigration administration. place on 30 June 1815, and on 30 June 2015, the position of the Supreme Court today and look Supreme Court of Norway celebrated 200 years of ahead at what awaits the Supreme Court in the The New Year will get off to a good start with new being the highest and leading court in Norway. future. Such glances at the Supreme Court have and exciting cases. However, 2016 will also be an been made during internal and external seminars, important year for the Supreme Court with respect The main event on 30 June 2015 was the Bicentenary anniversary speeches and not least through to the appointment of a new Chief Justice. This Meeting, held at the Supreme Court’s Grand publication of two books - the Supreme Court’s person will take over leadership of a very active Chamber, with the King, the President of the history from 1965 to today, written by Professor 200-year-old on 1 March 2016. Storting, the Norwegian Prime Minister, the Minister Jørn Øyrehagen Sunde from the University of of Justice and other invited guests present. Later that Bergen and the Supreme Court’s own anniversary I hope you find the report interesting. same day, the Norwegian government held a book “Lov Sannhet Rett” (Law Truth Justice). For reception at Akershus Castle for the Supreme Court those of us who work at the Supreme Court, it has Oslo, 4 January 2016 and guests, including representatives of all our been very interesting to become even better courts. King Harald also attended the event. The 30 acquainted with the institution to which we all feel June was rounded off with an informal gathering for a strong attachment. guests, primarily from other courts, in the Supreme Court Building. The following day, the Supreme Court Although the bicentenary and its celebrations have 4 held an “open house” with guided tours, lectures and left their mark on the Supreme Court in the past Tore Schei 5 BICENTENARY SUMMARY OF SUPREME COURT CASES AND PROCEDURE Section 88 of the Constitution provides that “The precisely their client's case should be heard by the Supreme Court decides in the final instance”. Supreme Court in chambers. Generally, this is done From this, it follows that the Supreme Court is the in a brief and concise appeal, highlighting the issue country's highest court in all types of cases. The or issues of principle at stake. main task of the Supreme Court is to contribute, through its decisions, to clarification and As mentioned above, the Appeals Selection development of the law, within the framework Committee decides whether or not to refer an that follows from the Constitution and the appeal to the Supreme Court for a hearing in prevailing law. chambers. In each case, the Appeals Selection Committee comprises of three Supreme Court Any appeal to the Supreme Court against a Justices. They decide on the basis of the case judgment by the Court of Appeal, must be granted documents. The cases that go forward are decided leave from the Appeals Selection Committee. The by one of the two chambers set with five Justices, condition for granting leave to appeal pursuant to or, in exceptional cases, by a so-called reinforced procedural legislation is normally that a decision court - a plenary session of the Supreme Court or a by the Supreme Court will be important in term of Grand Chamber set with 11 Justices. principle; it must provide important legal guidance for other cases. Even though a Supreme Court The cases are heard orally - counsel for the decision will only be legally binding for the parties appellant gives an account of the legal and factual to that particular case, the Supreme Court’s issues the Supreme Court has to consider. These position as a stare decisis court means that any oral proceedings are open to the public. Anyone decision it delivers will have implications for can enter the courtroom and listen in - all you have anyone involved in similar cases. to do is show up. The Supreme Court’s website, www.hoyesterett.no, has information on the cases Many court of appeal decisions are appealed, but to be heard, specifying the subject matter of each only a small portion of these are granted leave. case and when it is scheduled for hearing. When a THE SUPREME COURT’S The odds of having your case heard by the court judgment is delivered, it is published on the in chambers are long, both legally and in practical website - in the form of a brief summary as well BICENTENARY terms. This stringent “filtering” is necessary for as the full text judgment for anyone who might be the Supreme Court to have enough time to hear interested. Read on to find out more about the Supreme Court’s the truly important cases. It is up to the lawyers bicentenary year and the bicentenary celebrations in 2015. to convince the Appeals Selection Committee that Photo: Morten Brakestad 6 BICENTENARY “HONOURABLE GENTLEMEN! JUSTICES OF THE REALM! With the deepest reverence; with the greatest joy, but not without due trepidation, I stand before the Supreme Court of Norway today and the honourable audience attending its formal opening.” These were the opening lines of Attorney Bredo Henrik Von Munthe af Morgenstierne’s opening speech to the Supreme Court of Norway at its first session on 30 June 1815. Recited here by actor Henrik Mestad during the Government's reception at Akershus castle 200 years later. Professor Ola Mestad is sitting waiting to recite Attorney Jonas Anton Hielm’s counterplea. Photo: Morten Brakestad 8 9 THE LOFT THE BICENTENARY 200 YEARS IN TWO MINUTES IT ALL STARTED IN A LIBRARY In 1815, the Supreme Court used the Cathedral School’s library. Today, the library is now located in In 2004, the Supreme Court was set for the first time with only female Justices. the Norwegian Folk Museum. Photo: Anne-Lise Reinsfelt / Norsk Folk Museum Photo: Nils Bjåland / VG / NTB scanpix The government appointed Justices to the Supreme Oral process and public grounds Justices resigned. This was in response to a session at the Supreme Court for the first time. Court of Norway on 27 September 1814. The Today, we take it for granted that the trials are oral, the German edicts that threatened the County Governor of Bergen, Johan Randulf Bull, and that the grounds for the decisions are public. independence of the Supreme Court. At the One Supreme Court was the Supreme Court's first Chief Justice. It took This has not always been the case. In 1814, there reopening of the Supreme Court on 14 May 1945 The Supreme Court has always dealt with cases in some time to get started and the formal opening - were strong forces at work who wanted the cases Chief Justice Paal Berg said, among other things: all jurisdictions. Our Supreme Court distinguishes the Supreme Court’s first session - eventually took to be processed in writing, but that was not to be. “We will now rebuild our old constitutional society, itself here from the supreme courts in most other place on 30 June 1815 and concerned legal It was not until 1863 that the Justices’ grounds and one of the oldest in the West European cultural European countries. The highest jurisdiction is proceedings for the redemption of allodial land. voting became public. circle. As the highest court in Norway, the Supreme usually shared between a general supreme court, The judgment was delivered that same day.