The legal basis for our August Court (Constitutional Court) is Section 9(2) of the Courts Act (Cap. 3.02 of the Laws of Malawi) which provides that every proceeding in the High Court and all business arising there out, if it expressly and substantively relates to, or concerns the interpretation or application of the provisions of the Constitution, shall be heard and disposed of by or before not less than three judges.

President: His Lordship Justice Rizine Robert Mzikamanda, SC (Chief                                             Justice)

Other Members: All Judges of the High Court of Malawi. Whenever a case raises a        Constitutional question, parties to the case or a presiding judge will  seek certification from the Chief Justice that the matter be determined a Constitutional matter. When the Chief Justice   certifies the matteras a Constitutional matter, he/she will empanel   a Constitutional Court comprising not less three judges from  among the judges of the High Court to sit as a Constitutional  Court. In other words, all Judges of the High Court can sit as members of the August Court on case-to-case basis.

The former Constitution (1966 Constitution) did not allow multiparty in Malawi. Also, it did not have the Bill of Rights.

1966 Constitution and 1994 Constitution

The Judicature chapter in the Constitution. It provides for the independence and jurisdiction of the courts and the Judiciary, qualifications of Judicial Officers, judicial oath and tenure of judges, among others.

• The 2019 Elections case in which the Constitutional Court nullified the election of a State President due to massive irregularities during the electoral processes.
• The Muluzi case in which the Constitutional Court ruled that the presumption of innocencecould be limited as long as the justification for such limitation was clearly established, for example, in corruption cases where a public officer is expected to explain his or her wealth where it is established by the state that the public officer was in control or possession of pecuniary resources or property disproportionate to his present or past official emoluments or other known sources of income.

The Library at the Principal Registry of the Malawi Judiciary situated in Blantyre.

www.judiciary.mw

Tel: +265 1 880532

Email: highcourt@judiciary.mw

Fax: +265 1 873873

Postal Address: High Court of Malawi, P.O. Box 30244, Chichiri, Blantyre 3, Malawi.

The fundamental texts in the current Constitution are; Doctrine of Separation of Power among the executive, legislature and judiciary, Bill of Rights, Establishment of different good governance institutions (Ombudsman, Human Rights Commission etc.) and the entrenchment of the independence of the Judiciary.