Judgments and Their Enforcement
Explanation
Decisions of the State Council are limited to declaring the legal situations that form the subject of the lawsuit. The law prohibits the administrative judge from taking the place of the competent administrative authority, so the judge does not have the right to deduce legal consequences or take administrative decisions in its place.
The issuance of a judicial decision is subject to specific formal procedures. The decision must be signed by the president, the members who participated in issuing it, and the clerk of the Council. After that, the decision is copied into a special register and is automatically notified to the Government Commissioner and the litigants.
The judgments of the State Council have binding force on the administration. Legal persons of public law must execute final judgments within a reasonable time limit. If the administration delays execution without cause, the aggrieved party has the right to request the Council to impose a coercive fine [astreinte] that remains in effect until the judgment is executed.
The law establishes personal liability for civil servants who obstruct the execution of judgments. Any civil servant who uses their authority or influence to hinder or delay the execution of a judicial decision is subject to a financial fine before the Court of Audit ranging between three months' salary and six months' salary.
The law specifies the available methods of recourse to challenge judgments. Judgments of administrative courts only accept third-party opposition [tierce opposition] and appeal [appel]. In non-tax full jurisdiction [plein contentieux] lawsuits, the acceptance of an appeal requires that the value of the judgment exceeds fifty million Lebanese pounds.
As for the decisions of the State Council, they do not accept any method of recourse except objection, third-party opposition, retrial, and a request to correct a material error.
Official legal articles
replace · 1993-10-14: Open the official text
replace · 2000-06-29: Open the official text
Think deeper
How does the prohibition of the State Council from taking decisions in place of the administration explain giving it the authority to impose a coercive fine on the administration that refuses to execute?
Flashcards
Does the State Council have the right to take administrative decisions in place of the competent administration?
No, its decision is limited to declaring legal situations, and it does not have the right to take the place of the competent administrative authority.
Who are the parties that must sign a decision of the State Council?
The decision is signed by the president, the members who participated in issuing it, and the clerk of the Council.
What is the procedure available to the aggrieved party if the administration delays the execution of a final judgment without cause?
They can request the State Council to compel the administration to pay a coercive fine that remains in effect until the judgment is executed.
What is the penalty imposed on a civil servant who hinders the execution of an administrative judicial decision?
They are fined before the Court of Audit by an amount not less than three months' salary and not exceeding six months' salary.
What are the only accepted methods of recourse against judgments of administrative courts?
Third-party opposition and appeal.
What is the financial threshold for accepting an appeal in non-tax full jurisdiction lawsuits?
The value of the judgment must exceed fifty million Lebanese pounds.
What are the accepted methods of recourse against decisions of the State Council?
Objection, third-party opposition, retrial, and a request to correct a material error.
Practice questions
What is the scope to which the decision of the State Council is limited when deciding a lawsuit?
The decision is limited to declaring legal situations, and the Council cannot replace the administrative authority (Article 91).
To whom is the decision of the State Council automatically notified after being copied into a special register?
The decision is copied into a special register and automatically notified to the Government Commissioner and litigants (Article 92).
What is the condition to impose a coercive fine on the administration for failing to execute a final judgment issued by the State Council?
The legal person must delay execution without cause, and the aggrieved party must request the fine (Article 93).
What is the financial penalty for a civil servant who uses their influence to delay the execution of an administrative judicial decision?
The civil servant is fined before the Court of Audit between three and six months of salary (Article 93).
In non-tax full jurisdiction lawsuits, when is the appeal of administrative court judgments accepted?
An appeal in these lawsuits is only accepted against judgments whose value exceeds fifty million Lebanese pounds (Article 94).
Which of the following methods of recourse is legally not accepted against decisions of the State Council?
Recourse methods are limited to objection, third-party opposition, retrial, and material error correction. Appeal is unaccepted (Article 94).
Case problems
A final judgment was issued by the State Council for a company against a ministry. The ministry refrained from execution for a long period without any legal justification. The company submitted a request to the Council asking for two specific things. The first is compelling the ministry to take a specific administrative decision. The second is imposing a financial fine for each day of delay. How does the Council address these two requests legally?
Model answer
The Council rejects the first request related to compelling the ministry to take a decision. The judgment is limited to declaring the legal situations that constitute the lawsuit. The State Council cannot replace the competent administrative authority to take necessary decisions (Article 91).
The Council accepts the second request related to imposing a financial fine on the ministry. If a public legal person delays executing a final judgment without cause, a coercive fine is imposed. This fine is ordered upon the aggrieved party's request and remains effective until execution (Article 93).