The
Court of Appeal of the Republic of Singapore is the nation's highest court and its
court of final appeal. It is the upper division of the
Supreme Court of
Singapore, the lower being the
High Court. The Court of Appeal consists of the
Chief Justice of Singapore, who is the President of the Court, and the Judges of Appeal. The Chief Justice may ask
judges of the High Court to sit as members of the Court of Appeal to hear particular cases. The seat of the Court of Appeal is the
Supreme Court Building.
The Court exercises only
appellate jurisdiction in
civil and
criminal matters. In other words, it possesses no
original jurisdiction – it does not deal with trials of matters coming before the court for the first time. In general, the Court hears civil appeals from decisions of the High Court made in the exercise of the latter's original and appellate jurisdiction, that is, decisions on cases that started in the High Court as well as decisions that were appealed from the
Subordinate Courts to the High Court. However, this rule is subject to various restrictions. Some types of High Court decisions are not appealable to the Court of Appeal, while others are only appealable if the Court grants
leave (permission). Where criminal matters are concerned, the Court only hears appeals from cases originating in the High Court. Matters heard by the High Court on appeal from the Subordinate Courts cannot be further appealed to the Court of Appeal, though
questions of law may be submitted...
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