Bénin: Dandi Gnamou elected President of the High Court of Justice

The law professor and member of the Constitutional Court, Dandi Gnamou, is the new President of the High Court of Justice, succeeding Madame Marie Cécile de Dravo.

She was elected following the swearing-in of the deputies designated to sit as judges within the institution. The new judges of the High Court of Justice are Eustache Akpovi, Edouard Behanzin, Solange Mehou, Gafari Adechokan, Benoît Dègla, and Yacoubou Orou Se Guené.

In Benin, the High Court of Justice derives its legitimacy and legality from articles 135, 136, 137, and 138 of Law No. 90-32 of December 11, 1990, establishing the Constitution of the Republic of Benin.

Pursuant to article 136, the High Court of Justice is competent to judge the President of the Republic and members of the Government for acts qualified as high treason, offenses committed in the exercise or on the occasion of the exercise of their functions, as well as to judge their accomplices in the event of a plot against the security of the State.

Ordinary courts remain competent for offenses committed outside the exercise of their functions and for which they are criminally responsible.