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Atribunal, generally, is any person orinstitution withauthority tojudge,adjudicate on, or determine claims or disputes—whether or not it is called a tribunal in its title.[1] For example, anadvocate who appears before acourt with a single judge could describe that judge as "their tribunal". Manygovernmental bodies are titled "tribunals" to emphasize that they are not courts of normaljurisdiction. For instance, theInternational Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda was a body specially constituted underinternational law; inGreat Britain,employment tribunals are bodies set up to hear specific employment disputes.
In many but not all cases,tribunal implies a judicial orquasi-judicial body with a lesser degree of formality than a court, in which the normal rules of evidence and procedure may not apply, and whose presiding officers are frequently neither judges nor magistrates. Private judicial bodies are also often-styled tribunals.Tribunal is not conclusive of a body's function; in Great Britain, theEmployment Appeal Tribunal is a superior court of record.
The term is derived from thetribunes, magistrates of the ClassicalRoman Republic.Tribunal originally referred to the office of the tribunes, and the term is still sometimes used in this sense in historical writings. The tribunal was the platform upon which the presiding authority sat; having a raised position physically was symbolic of their higher position regarding the adjudication of the law.
In Australia,tribunal generally implies a body with a lesser degree of formality than acourt, with a simplified legal procedure, often presided over by a lawyer (solicitor or barrister) who is not a judge or magistrate (often referred to as amember of the tribunal). In many cases, the lawyers who function as tribunal members do so only part-time and spend the greater part of their time carrying out other aspects of legal practice, such as representing clients. In many cases, the formal rules of evidence that apply in courts do not apply in tribunals, which enables tribunals to hear forms of evidence that courts may not be allowed to consider. Tribunals generally deal with simpler matters; while legal representation is permitted and not uncommon, self-representation is much more common in tribunals than in courts, and tribunal members and registry staff are generally more accustomed to dealing with self-represented parties than courts are. Appeal from a tribunal is to a court.
Tribunals in Australia include the following:
Every state has a "supertribunal" that covers a wide range of administrative decisions and, in some cases, has civil jurisdiction.[2] In several Australian states, tribunals function as the equivalent of asmall claims court.
In the context ofsport, "tribunal" frequently refers to theAFL Tribunal, the disciplinary body of theAustralian Football League.
In Bangladesh,tribunal refers to a court that serves some special purpose, of which Bangladesh has several. These have been set up to ensure speedy trial and reduce case congestion in the normal courts. Besides this, Article 117 of the Constitution of Bangladesh empowers the parliament to set up one or more administrative tribunals. No court can entertain any proceeding or make any order regarding any matter within such tribunal's jurisdiction.[3]
In thejudicial system of Belgium, the names of the lowertrial courts can be translated into English as "tribunals" (Dutch:rechtbank,French:tribunal,German:gericht). In comparison, the higherappellate courts can be translated as "courts" (Dutch:hof,French:cour,German:hof).
TheJudiciary of Brazil officially names "tribunal" the appeal court and the ones above it, always with more than one judge. The higher court is theSupremo Tribunal Federal (Supreme Federal Court), followed by the superior tribunals (Superior Tribunal de Justiça,Tribunal Superior Eleitoral,Tribunal Superior do Trabalho,Superior Tribunal Militar). The federal justice is divided into regions; each has its Tribunal Regional Federal (Regional Federal Court). Also, each state has its own Tribunal de Justiça (Justice Court).
The following tribunals exist within theJudiciary of theHong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China:Lands,Small Claims,Labour,Obscene Articles. For public inquiries, commissions are set up instead under the Commissions of Inquiry Ordinance.
There are tribunals for settling various administrative and tax-related disputes, including Central Administrative Tribunal,Income Tax Appellate Tribunal,Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, National Green Tribunal, Competition Appellate Tribunal and Securities Appellate Tribunal, among others.[4]
TheNational Company Law Tribunal is aquasi-judicial body in India that adjudicates issues relating toIndian companies.
National Company Law Appellate Tribunal was constituted under Section 410 of the Companies Act, 2013, for hearing appeals against National Company Law Tribunal orders, effective 1 June 2016.
In several states, Food Safety Appellate Tribunals have been created to hear appeals against orders of adjudicating officers for food safety (additional deputy commissioners).
Armed Forces Tribunal is amilitary tribunal in India. It was established under theArmed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007.
Permanent Lok Adalat (PUS) is a law court (also known as People's Court) and special tribunal set up in some districts throughout the country. It has been established underthe Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.
In theRepublic of Ireland,tribunal popularly refers to apublic inquiry established under theTribunals of Inquiry (Evidence) Act 1921. The main difference between a Parliamentary Inquiry (non-statutory) and a Tribunal of Inquiry in Ireland is that non-statutory inquiries are not vested with the powers, privileges, and rights of the High Court. Tribunals of Inquiry are. Tribunals are established by resolution of theHouses of the Oireachtas to enquire into matters ofurgent public importance. It is not a function of Tribunals to administer justice; their work issolely inquisitorial. Tribunals are obliged toreport their findings to theOireachtas. They can enforce the attendance and examination of witnesses and produce documents relevant to the work. Tribunals can consist of one or more people. A layperson or non-lawyer may be the Sole member of a tribunal.
Historically, before the separation of lawmaking, law enforcement, and justice duties in the Netherlands, all sentences were delivered by a tribunal of sevenschepenen, or magistrates, appointed by the local count. Such a tribunal was called aVierschaar, so named for a rope—or cord—drawn (schaar orscheren) in a four-square dimension, wherein the judges sat on four benches. These benches were also positioned in a square, with the defendant standing in the middle. Towns had theVierschaar privilege to hear disputes. TheVierschaar was usually located in the town hall, and many historical town halls still have such a room, usually decorated with scenes from theJudgement of Solomon.
Thetribunal system of the United Kingdom is part of the national system ofadministrative justice. The system grew on anad hoc basis from the beginning of the twentieth century, but reforms were introduced in 2007 to place most tribunals in a unified system with recognised judicial authority, routes ofappeal and regulatory supervision.[5]
"Tribunal" is used in the U.S. generally to refer to courts or judicial bodies, as in theABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct. TheOhio Rules of Professional Conduct, for instance, define "tribunal" as "a court, an arbitrator in a bindingarbitration, or a legislative body, administrative agency, or other body acting in an adjudicative capacity."[6]
In theCatholic Church,ecclesiastical courts are called tribunals. Tribunals are distinguished by grade, while proceedings are distinguished by instance; for example, an archdiocesan tribunal may hear a cause in the first instance if the cause is first brought before the archdiocesan tribunal. Or, if the cause was first heard before the diocesan tribunal and is now appealed to the archdiocesan tribunal, the latter may hear the cause in the second instance. Only the Roman Rota can hear causes in the third instance, with limited exceptions. Other tribunals are incompetent in the third instance because of grade (ratione gradus) since they do not have the jurisdiction to judge in the third instance. Tribunals include:
Tribunals also play an integral role in health sectors within and across nations. They are often referred to as "adjunctive tribunals". These quasi-judicial bodies possess regulatory, oversight, and dispute-resolution powers to aid health decision-making and governance. At the same time, the actual effects of adjunctive tribunals on health services are disputed, as little evidence exists to evaluate their efficacy. More empirical evaluations are needed to ensure that tribunals operate in a more evidence-based, systematic manner within the health sector.[9][10]
