Five courts of appeal hear appeals from the tribunals of first instance and the enterprise tribunals. Appeal is a full rehearing on the facts and the law, not a review confined to legal error, which is what distinguishes this stage from Cassation. Separate Labour Courts (cours du travail / arbeidshoven) hear appeals from the labour tribunals in the same five areas.
How the court is constituted
- Tier
- appellate
- Court type
- General appellate courts
- Jurisdiction
- Five appeal areas: Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, Liège and Mons
- Seat
- Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, Liège and Mons
- Composition
- Chambers of one or three counsellors depending on the subject matter, with a chamber of indictment for criminal procedure
- Appointment
- Appointed for life by the King on nomination by the High Council of Justice
- Languages
- Dutch, French, German
Where an appeal goes next
Appeal on points of law to the Court of Cassation
Filing at this court
- Time limit
- Normally one month from service of the first-instance judgment
- Effect
- The case is reheard in full, on fact and law
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