Structure Of The Court
Management of the Court
- The Court is managed by the President and the Vice President who are elected by the Members. They are responsible for the strategic orientation of the Court. They also supervise the management and administration thereof, consider the draft work program of the Court, determine the highlights of the budget of the Court and define the procedures relating to the internal organization of the Court.
Office of the President
- The Cabinet of the Presidency of the ECOWAS Commission took on a new status with the adoption by the Council of Ministers in December 1999, positioned for the added responsibilities that go with the functions of a Commission. The Cabinet is headed by a Director who acts as a principal adviser to the President of the ECOWAS Commission. He assists in monitoring and following up on activities in support of the Presidency and the President and carries out any tasks as assigned by the President.
Office of the Vice President
- The Vice President the ECOWAS Commission deputises for the President of the Commission. With a four-year mandate, the Vice President is charged with the responsibility of ensuring a functional, seamless running of the Commission in the absence of the President. He also assists and supports the President in the duties relating to the broad mandate of ECOWAS. The Office of the Vice President enhances and coordinates technical issues and other routine business by a supervision of a number of Units essential to the management of the ECOWAS Commission.
Judges’ Chambers
- he Court is composed of five independent judges chosen from among persons of high moral character, who must be nationals of ECOWAS Member States and must possess the qualifications for appointment to the Supreme Court or the highest judicial office, or are jurisconsults of recognized competence in international law, especially community law or law of regional integration. In addition, they must have at least twenty years professional experience. They have a four-year term non-renewable. Judges or members of the Court cannot be regarded as representatives of their Governments or government of any other ECOWAS member state.
The Office of the Chief Registrar
- The Chief Registrar reports directly to the President of the Court. He assists the President and the Judges in all their official functions. The Chief Registrar is also the custodian of the Seal of the Court and all judicial records of the Court. He is also responsible for the publications of the Court. He is the institutional memory of the Court and carries out other functions as specified in the Protocol on the Court, Rules of Procedure, Practice Direction and Instructions to the Chief Registrar.
