Date: Hidar 07, 2009 E.C.
Key Legal Interpretation:
Any person has the constitutional right to bring a justiciable matter to a court of law (pursuant to Article 37, Sub-Article 1 of the FDRE Constitution). A judicial claim for the removal of interference is a justiciable matter.
Cassation Court’s Reasoning:
The applicants’ suit is a judicial claim for the removal of interference. The lower High Court decided that the matter should not have been seen by the court in the first instance, stating that it only has appellate jurisdiction, not direct jurisdiction, over the Woreda Court. However, no argument with a legal basis was presented showing that the jurisdiction to hear and decide on a dispute for the removal of interference was given to another administrative structure. The High Court failed to realize that there was no reason the matter could not be seen by a court in the first instance. This conclusion failed to respect the citizens’ constitutional right to access justice and committed a fundamental error of law.
Decision:
The decision rendered by the Afar National Regional State Kilbet Rasu High Court and the order given by the Regional Supreme Court Appellate Division are reversed. The matter is deemed a justiciable matter for the removal of interference, and it is remanded to the High Court to investigate the identity of the holding and the commission of the interference (pursuant to Article 341(1) of the Civil Procedure Code).