Niger300 km; (the Niger, the only major river, is navigable to Gayabetween September and March) (2008)
Nigeria8,600 km (Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers andcreeks) (2009)
Norway1,577 km (2008)
Panama800 km (includes the 82-km Panama Canal that is beingwidened) (2010)
Papua New Guinea11,000 km (2006)
Paraguay3,100 km (primarily on the Paraguay and Parana riversystems) (2010)
Peru8,808 kmnote: 8,600 km of navigable tributaries on Amazon system and 208 kmon Lago Titicaca (2010)
Philippines3,219 km; (limited to vessels with draft less than 1.5m) (2011)
Poland3,997 km (navigable rivers and canals) (2009)
Portugal210 km (on Douro River from Porto) (2008)
Romania1,731 kmnote: includes 1,075 km on Danube River, 524 km on secondarybranches, and 132 km on canals (2006)
Russia102,000 km (including 48,000 km with guaranteed depth)note: 72,000 km system in European Russia links Baltic Sea, WhiteSea, Caspian Sea, Sea of Azov, and Black Sea (2009)
RwandaLac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft(2009)
Senegal1,000 km (primarily on Senegal, Saloum, and Casamancerivers) (2008)
Serbia587 km (primarily on Danube and Sava rivers) (2009)
Sierra Leone800 km (600 km year round) (2007)
Slovakia172 km (on Danube River) (2009)
Sloveniasome transport on Drava River (2010)
Spain1,000 km (2008)
Sri Lanka160 km (primarily on rivers in southwest) (2008)
Sudan4,068 km (1,723 km open year round on White and Blue Nilerivers) (2008)
Suriname1,200 km (most navigable by ships with drafts up to 7 m)(2010)
Sweden2,052 km (2010)
Switzerland65 km; (Rhine River between Basel-Rheinfelden andSchaffhausen-Bodensee) (2008)
Syria900 km (navigable not economically significant) (2010)
Tajikistan200 km (along Vakhsh River) (2010)
TanzaniaLake Tanganyika, Lake Victoria, and Lake Nyasa areprincipal avenues of commerce with neighboring countries; rivers arenot navigable (2009)
Thailand 4,000 km note: 3,701 km navigable by boats with drafts up to 0.9 m (2010)
Togo50 km (seasonally on Mono River depending on rainfall) (2008)
Turkey1,200 km (2008)
Turkmenistan1,300 km (Amu Darya and Kara Kum canal are importantinland waterways) (2008)
Ugandathere are no long navigable stretches of river in Uganda;parts of the Albert Nile that flow out of Lake Albert in thenorthwestern part of the country are navigable; several lakesincluding Lake Victoria and Lake Kyoga have substantial traffic;Lake Albert is navigable along a 200 km stretch from its northerntip to its southern shores (2009)
Ukraine2,150 km (most on Dnieper River) (2009)
United Kingdom3,200 km (620 km used for commerce) (2008)
United States41,009 km (19,312 km used for commerce)note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km, including the SaintLawrence River of 3,058 km, shared with Canada (2008)
Uruguay1,600 km (2010)
Uzbekistan1,100 km (2009)
Venezuela7,100 kmnote: Orinoco River (400 km) and Lake de Maracaibo navigable byoceangoing vessels (2010)
Vietnam17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft)(2011)
World671,886 km (2004)top ten longest rivers: Nile (Africa) 6,693 km; Amazon (SouthAmerica) 6,436 km; Mississippi-Missouri (North America) 6,238 km;Yenisey-Angara (Asia) 5,981 km; Ob-Irtysh (Asia) 5,569 km; Yangtze(Asia) 5,525 km; Yellow (Asia) 4,671 km; Amur (Asia) 4,352 km; Lena(Asia) 4,345 km; Congo (Africa) 4,344 kmnote: if measured by volume, the Amazon is the largest river in theworld
Zambia2,250 km; (includes Lake Tanganyika and the Zambezi andLuapula rivers) (2010)
Zimbabweon Lake Kariba (2009)
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@2094
Field Listing :: Judicial branch
This entry contains the name(s) of the highest court(s) and a brief description of the selection process for members. Country
Judicial branch
Afghanistanthe constitution establishes a nine-member Stera Mahkamaor Supreme Court (its nine justices are appointed for 10-year termsby the president with approval of the Wolesi Jirga) and subordinateHigh Courts and Appeals Courts; there is also a minister of justice;a separate Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission established bythe Bonn Agreement is charged with investigating human rights abusesand war crimes
AlbaniaConstitutional Court, Supreme Court (chairman is elected bythe People's Assembly for a four-year term) and multiple appeals anddistrict courts
AlgeriaSupreme Court
American SamoaHigh Court (chief justice and associate justices areappointed by the US Secretary of the Interior)
AndorraTribunal of Judges or Tribunal de Batlles; Tribunal of theCourts or Tribunal de Corts; Supreme Court of Justice of Andorra orTribunal Superior de Justicia d'Andorra; Supreme Council of Justiceor Consell Superior de la Justicia; Constitutional Tribunal orTribunal Constitucional
AngolaSupreme Court and separate provincial courts (judges areappointed by the president)
AnguillaHigh Court (judge provided by Eastern Caribbean SupremeCourt)
Antigua and BarbudaEastern Caribbean Supreme Court consisting of aHigh Court of Justice and a Court of Appeal (based in Saint Lucia;two judges of the Supreme Court are residents of the islands andpreside over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction); Magistrates'Courts; member of the Caribbean Court of Justice
ArgentinaSupreme Court or Corte Suprema (the Supreme Court judgesare appointed by the president with approval of the Senate)note: the Supreme Court has seven judges; the Argentine Congress in2006 passed a bill to gradually reduce the number of Supreme Courtjudges to five
ArmeniaConstitutional Court; Court of Cassation (Appeals Court)
ArubaCommon Court of Justice, Joint High Court of Justice (judgesappointed by the monarch)
AustraliaHigh Court (the chief justice and six other justices areappointed by the governor general acting on the advice of thegovernment)
AustriaSupreme Judicial Court or Oberster Gerichtshof;Administrative Court or Verwaltungsgerichtshof; Constitutional Courtor Verfassungsgerichtshof
AzerbaijanSupreme Court
Bahamas, ThePrivy Council in London; Courts of Appeal; Supreme(lower) Court; Magistrates' Courts
BahrainHigh Civil Appeals Court
BangladeshSupreme Court (the chief justices and other judges areappointed by the president)
BarbadosSupreme Court of Judicature consists of a High Court and aCourt of Appeal (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions forthe Judicial and Legal Services); Caribbean Court of Justice or CCJis the highest court of appeal; based in Port of Spain, Trinidad andTobago
BelarusSupreme Court (judges are appointed by the president);Constitutional Court (half of the judges appointed by the presidentand half appointed by the Chamber of Representatives)
BelgiumSupreme Court of Justice or Hof van Cassatie (in Dutch) orCour de Cassation (in French) (judges are appointed for life by thegovernment; candidacies have to be submitted by the High JusticeCouncil)
BelizeSummary Jurisdiction Courts (criminal) and District Courts(civil jurisdiction); Supreme Court (the chief justice is appointedby the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Courtof Appeal; Privy Council in the UK; member of the Caribbean Court ofJustice (CCJ)
BeninConstitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Courtor Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice
BermudaSupreme Court; Court of Appeal; Magistrate Courts
BhutanSupreme Court of Appeal (the monarch); High Court (judgesappointed by the monarch); note - the draft constitution establishesa Supreme Court that will serve as chief court of appeal
BoliviaSupreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges elected by popularvote from list of candidates pre-selected by Assembly for six-yearterms); District Courts (one in each department); PlurinationalConstitutional Court (five primary or titulares and five alternateor suplente magistrates elected by popular vote from list ofcandidates pre-selected by Assembly for six-year terms; to rule onconstitutional issues); Plurinational Electoral Organ (seven memberselected by the Assembly and the president; one member must be ofindigenous origin to six-year terms); Agro-Environmental Court(judges elected by popular vote from list of candidates pre-selectedby Assembly for six-year terms; to run on agro-environmentalissues); provincial and local courts (to try minor cases)
Bosnia and HerzegovinaBiH Constitutional Court (consists of ninemembers: four members are selected by the Bosniak/Croat Federation'sHouse of Representatives, two members by the Republika Srpska'sNational Assembly, and three non-Bosnian members by the president ofthe European Court of Human Rights); BiH State Court (consists of 44national judges and seven international judges and has threedivisions - Administrative, Appellate and Criminal - havingjurisdiction over cases related to state-level law and casesinitiated in the entities that question BiH's sovereignty, politicalindependence, or national security or with economic crimes that haveserious repercussions to BiH's economy, beyond that of an entity orBrcko District); a War Crimes Chamber opened in March 2005note: the entities each have a Supreme Court; each entity also has anumber of lower courts; there are 10 cantonal courts in theFederation, plus a number of municipal courts; the Republika Srpskahas five district courts and a number of municipal courts
BotswanaHigh Court; Court of Appeal; Magistrates' Courts (one ineach district)
BrazilSupreme Federal Tribunal or STF (11 ministers are appointedfor life by the president and confirmed by the Senate); HigherTribunal of Justice; Regional Federal Tribunals (judges areappointed for life); note - though appointed "for life," judges,like all federal employees, have a mandatory retirement age of 70
British Virgin IslandsEastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consistingof the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge ofthe Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over theHigh Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of SummaryJurisdiction
BruneiSupreme Court - chief justice and judges are sworn in bymonarch for three-year terms; Judicial Committee of Privy Council inLondon is final court of appeal for civil cases; Sharia courts dealwith Islamic laws (2006)
Bulgariaindependent judiciary comprised of judges, prosecutors andinvestigating magistrates who are appointed, promoted, demoted, anddismissed by a 25-member Supreme Judicial Council (consists of thechairmen of the two Supreme Courts, the Chief Prosecutor, and 22members, half of whom are elected by the National Assembly and theother half by the bodies of the judiciary for a 5-year term inoffice); three levels of case review; 182 courts of which twoSupreme Courts act as the last instance on civil and criminal cases(the Supreme Court of Cassation) and appeals of government decisions(the Supreme Administrative Court)
Burkina FasoSupreme Court; Appeals Court
Burmaremnants of the British-era legal system are in place, butthere is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the judiciary is notindependent of the executive
BurundiSupreme Court or Cour Supreme; Constitutional Court; HighCourt of Justice (composed of the Supreme Court and theConstitutional Court)
CambodiaSupreme Council of the Magistracy (provided for in theconstitution and formed in December 1997); Supreme Court (and lowercourts) exercises judicial authority
CameroonSupreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); HighCourt of Justice (consists of nine judges and six substitute judges;elected by the National Assembly)
CanadaSupreme Court of Canada (judges are appointed by the primeminister through the governor general); Federal Court of Canada;Federal Court of Appeal; Provincial Courts (these are namedvariously Court of Appeal, Court of Queen's Bench, Superior Court,Supreme Court, and Court of Justice)
Cape VerdeSupreme Tribunal of Justice or Supremo Tribunal de Justia
Cayman IslandsGrand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal; SummaryCourt
Central African RepublicSupreme Court or Cour Supreme;Constitutional Court (three judges appointed by the president, threeby the president of the National Assembly, and three by fellowjudges); Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; Inferior Courts
ChadSupreme Court; Court of Appeal; Criminal Courts; MagistrateCourts
ChileSupreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are appointed by thepresident and ratified by the Senate from lists of candidatesprovided by the court itself; the president of the Supreme Court iselected every three years by the 20-member court); ConstitutionalTribunal (eight-members - two each from the Senate, Chamber ofDeputies, Supreme Court, and National Security Council - review theconstitutionality of laws approved by Congress)
ChinaSupreme People's Court (judges appointed by the NationalPeople's Congress); Local People's Courts (comprise higher,intermediate, and basic courts); Special People's Courts (primarilymilitary, maritime, railway transportation, and forestry courts)
Christmas IslandSupreme Court; District Court; Magistrate's Court
Cocos (Keeling) IslandsSupreme Court; Magistrate's Court
Colombiafour roughly coequal, supreme judicial organs; SupremeCourt of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (highest court ofcriminal law; judges are selected by their peers from the nomineesof the Superior Judicial Council for eight-year terms); Council ofState (highest court of administrative law; judges are selected fromthe nominees of the Superior Judicial Council for eight-year terms);Constitutional Court (guards integrity and supremacy of theconstitution; rules on constitutionality of laws, amendments to theconstitution, and international treaties); Superior Judicial Council(administers and disciplines the civilian judiciary; resolvesjurisdictional conflicts arising between other courts; members areelected by three sister courts and Congress for eight-year terms)
ComorosSupreme Court or Cour Supremes (two members appointed by thepresident, two members elected by the Federal Assembly, one electedby the Council of each island, and others are former presidents ofthe republic)
Congo, Democratic Republic of theConstitutional Court; AppealsCourt or Cour de Cassation; Council of State; High Military Court;plus civil and military courts and tribunals
Congo, Republic of theSupreme Court or Cour Supreme
Cook IslandsHigh Court
Costa RicaSupreme Court or Corte Suprema (22 justices are electedfor renewable eight-year terms by the Legislative Assembly)
Cote d'IvoireSupreme Court or Cour Supreme consists of fourchambers: Judicial Chamber for criminal cases, Audit Chamber forfinancial cases, Constitutional Chamber for judicial review cases,and Administrative Chamber for civil cases; there is no legal limitto the number of members
CroatiaSupreme Court; Constitutional Court; judges for both courtsare appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of theRepublic, which is elected by the Assembly
CubaPeople's Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo Popular (president,vice presidents, and other judges are elected by the NationalAssembly)
CuracaoCommon Court of Justice, Joint High Court of Justice (judgesappointed by the monarch)
CyprusSupreme Court (judges are appointed jointly by the presidentand vice president)note: there is also a Supreme Court in the area administered byTurkish Cypriots
Czech RepublicSupreme Court; Constitutional Court; SupremeAdministrative Court; chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed bythe president for a 10-year term
DenmarkSupreme Court (judges are appointed for life by the monarch)
DjiboutiSupreme Court or Cour Supreme
DominicaEastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the Court ofAppeal and the High Court (located in Saint Lucia; one of the sixjudges must reside in Dominica and preside over the Court of SummaryJurisdiction)
Dominican RepublicSupreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges areappointed by the National Judicial Council comprised of thepresident, the leaders of both chambers of congress, the presidentof the Supreme Court, and an additional non-governing partycongressional representative)
EcuadorNational Court of Justice or Corte Nacional de Justicia(according to the Constitution, justices are elected through aprocedure overseen by the Judiciary Council); Constitutional Courtor Corte Constitucional (Constitutional Court justices are appointedby a commission composed of two delegates each from the Executive,Legislative, and Transparency branches of government)
EgyptSupreme Constitutional Court
El SalvadorSupreme Court or Corte Suprema (15 judges are selectedby the Legislative Assembly; the 15 judges are assigned to fourSupreme Court chambers - constitutional, civil, penal, andadministrative conflict)
Equatorial GuineaSupreme Tribunal
EritreaHigh Court - regional, subregional, and village courts; alsohave military and special courts
EstoniaSupreme Court (chairman appointed for life by Parliament)
EthiopiaFederal Supreme Court (the president and vice president ofthe Federal Supreme Court are recommended by the prime minister andappointed by the House of People's Representatives; for otherfederal judges, the prime minister submits to the House of People'sRepresentatives for appointment candidates selected by the FederalJudicial Administrative Council)
European UnionCourt of Justice of the European Communities (ensuresthat the treaties are interpreted and applied uniformly throughoutthe EU; resolve constitutional issues among the EU institutions) -27 justices (one from each member state) appointed for a six-yearterm; note - for the sake of efficiency, the court can sit with 13justices known as the "Grand Chamber"; Court of First Instance - 27justices appointed for a six-year term
Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) Supreme Court (chief justice is a nonresident); Magistrates Court (senior magistrate presides over civil and criminal divisions); Court of Summary Jurisdiction
Faroe Islandsnone
FijiSupreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Court ofAppeal; High Court; Magistrates' Courts
Finlandgeneral courts - deal with criminal and civil cases (includedistrict courts, Courts of Appeal, and the Supreme Court or KorkeinOikeus, whose judges are appointed by the president); administrativecourts
FranceSupreme Court of Appeals or Cour de Cassation (judges areappointed by the president from nominations of the High Council ofthe Judiciary); Constitutional Council or Conseil Constitutionnel(three members appointed by the president, three appointed by thepresident of the National Assembly, and three appointed by thepresident of the Senate); Council of State or Conseil d'Etat
French PolynesiaCourt of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Court of the FirstInstance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance; Court of AdministrativeLaw or Tribunal Administratif
GabonSupreme Court or Cour Supreme consisting of three chambers -Judicial, Administrative, and Accounts; Constitutional Court; Courtsof Appeal; Court of State Security; County Courts
Gambia, TheSupreme Court
GeorgiaSupreme Court (judges elected by the Supreme Council on thepresident's or chairman of the Supreme Court's recommendation);Constitutional Court; first and second instance courts
GermanyFederal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht(half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by theBundesrat)
GhanaSupreme Court
GibraltarSupreme Court; Court of Appeal
GreeceSupreme Judicial Court; Special Supreme Tribunal; all judgesare appointed for life by the president after consultation with ajudicial council
GreenlandHigh Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the OstreLandsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court inCopenhagen)
GrenadaEastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of a court ofAppeal and a High Court of Justice (two High Court judges areassigned to and reside in Grenada); Itinerant Court of Appeal threejudges; member of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)
GuamFederal District Court (judge is appointed by the president);Territorial Superior Court (judges appointed for eight-year terms bythe governor)
GuatemalaConstitutional Court or Corte de Constitucionalidad isGuatemala's highest court (five judges are elected by Congress forconcurrent five-year terms); Supreme Court of Justice or CorteSuprema de Justicia (13 members are elected by Congress to serveconcurrent five-year terms and elect a president of the Court eachyear from among their number; the president of the Supreme Court ofJustice also supervises trial judges around the country, who arenamed to five-year terms)
GuernseyRoyal Court (judges elected by an electoral college and thebailiff)
GuineaCourt of First Instance or Tribunal de Premiere Instance;Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme
Guinea-BissauSupreme Court or Supremo Tribunal da Justica (consistsof nine justices appointed by the president and serve at hispleasure; final court of appeals in criminal and civil cases);Regional Courts (one in each of nine regions; first court of appealsfor Sectoral Court decisions; hear all felony cases and civil casesvalued at more than $1,000); 24 Sectoral Courts (judges are notnecessarily trained lawyers; they hear civil cases valued at lessthan $1,000 and misdemeanor criminal cases)
GuyanaSupreme Court of Judicature, consisting of the High Court andthe Court of Appeal, with right of final appeal to the CaribbeanCourt of Justice (CCJ)
HaitiSupreme Court or Cour de Cassation
Holy See (Vatican City)there are three tribunals responsible forcivil and criminal matters within Vatican City; three othertribunals rule on issues pertaining to the Holy Seenote: judicial duties were established by the Motu Proprio, papaldirective, of Pope PIUS XII on 1 May 1946
HondurasSupreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (15judges are elected for seven-year terms by the National Congress)
Hong KongCourt of Final Appeal in the Hong Kong SpecialAdministrative Region
HungaryConstitutional Court (judges are elected by the NationalAssembly for nine-year terms)
IcelandSupreme Court or Haestirettur (justices are appointed forlife by the Minister of Justice); eight district courts (justicesare appointed for life by the Minister of Justice)
IndiaSupreme Court (one chief justice and 25 associate justices areappointed by the president and remain in office until they reach theage of 65 or are removed for "proved misbehavior")
IndonesiaSupreme Court or Mahkamah Agung is the final court ofappeal but does not have the power of judicial review (justices areappointed by the president from a list of candidates selected by thelegislature); in March 2004 the Supreme Court assumed administrativeand financial responsibility for the lower court system from theMinistry of Justice and Human Rights; Constitutional Court orMahkamah Konstitusi (invested by the president on 16 August 2003)has the power of judicial review, jurisdiction over the results of ageneral election, and reviews actions to dismiss a president fromoffice; Labor Court under supervision of Supreme Court beganfunctioning in January 2006; the Anti-Corruption Court hasjurisdiction over corruption cases brought by the independentCorruption Eradication Commission
IranThe Supreme Court (Qeveh Qazaieh) and the four-member HighCouncil of the Judiciary have a single head and overlappingresponsibilities; together they supervise the enforcement of alllaws and establish judicial and legal policies; lower courts includea special clerical court, a revolutionary court, and a specialadministrative court
Iraqthe Iraq Constitution calls for the federal judicial power tobe comprised of the Higher Judicial Council, Federal Supreme Court,Federal Court of Cassation, Public Prosecution Department, JudiciaryOversight Commission and other federal courts that are regulated inaccordance with the law
IrelandSupreme Court (judges appointed by the president on theadvice of the prime minister and cabinet)
Isle of ManHigh Court of Justice (justices are appointed by theLord Chancellor of England on the nomination of the lieutenantgovernor)
IsraelSupreme Court (justices appointed by Judicial SelectionCommittee - made up of all three branches of the government;mandatory retirement age is 70)
ItalyConstitutional Court or Corte Costituzionale (composed of 15judges: one-third appointed by the president, one-third elected byparliament, one-third elected by the ordinary and administrativeSupreme Courts)
JamaicaSupreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general onthe advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal; Privy Council inUK; member of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)
JapanSupreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the monarch afterdesignation by the cabinet; all other justices are appointed by thecabinet)
JerseyRoyal Court (judges elected by an electoral college and thebailiff)
JordanCourt of Cassation (Supreme Court)
KazakhstanSupreme Court (44 members); Constitutional Council (sevenmembers)
KenyaCourt of Appeal (chief justice is appointed by the president);High Court
KiribatiCourt of Appeal; High Court; 26 Magistrates' courts; judgesat all levels are appointed by the president
Korea, NorthCentral Court (judges are elected by the SupremePeople's Assembly)
Korea, SouthSupreme Court (justices appointed by the president withconsent of National Assembly); Constitutional Court (justicesappointed by the president based partly on nominations by NationalAssembly and Chief Justice of the court)
KosovoSupreme Court; district courts; municipal courtsnote: the Kosovo Constitution dictates that the Supreme Court ofKosovo is the highest judicial authority, and provides for a KosovoJudicial Council (KJC) that proposes to the president candidates forappointment or reappointment as judges and prosecutors; the KJC isalso responsible for decisions on the promotion and transfer ofjudges and disciplinary proceedings against judges; at least 15percent of Supreme Court and district court judges shall be fromnon-majority communities
KuwaitHigh Court of Appeal
KyrgyzstanSupreme Court; Constitutional Court (judges of both theSupreme and Constitutional Courts are appointed for 10-year terms bythe Jogorku Kengesh on the recommendation of the president; theirmandatory retirement age is 70 years); Higher Court of Arbitration;Local Courts (judges appointed by the president on therecommendation of the National Council on Legal Affairs for aprobationary period of five years, then 10 years)
LaosPeople's Supreme Court (the president of the People's SupremeCourt is elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation ofthe National Assembly Standing Committee; the vice president of thePeople's Supreme Court and the judges are appointed by the NationalAssembly Standing Committee)
LatviaSupreme Court (judges' appointments are confirmed byparliament); Constitutional Court (judges' appointments areconfirmed by parliament)
Lebanonfour Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil andcommercial cases and one court for criminal cases); ConstitutionalCouncil (called for in Ta'if Accord - rules on constitutionality oflaws); Supreme Council (hears charges against the president andprime minister as needed)
LesothoHigh Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch acting onthe advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal; MagistrateCourts; customary or traditional court
LiberiaSupreme Court
LibyaSupreme Court
LiechtensteinSupreme Court or Oberster Gerichtshof; Court of Appealor Obergericht
LithuaniaConstitutional Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal;judges for all courts appointed by the president
Luxembourgjudicial courts and tribunals (three Justices of thePeace, two district courts, and one Supreme Court of Appeals);administrative courts and tribunals (State Prosecutor's Office,administrative courts and tribunals, and the Constitutional Court);judges for all courts are appointed for life by the monarch
MacauCourt of Final Appeal in Macau Special Administrative Region
MacedoniaSupreme Court; Constitutional Court; Republican JudicialCouncilnote: the Assembly appoints the judges
MadagascarSupreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Constitutional Courtor Haute Cour Constitutionnelle
MalawiSupreme Court of Appeal; High Court (chief justice appointedby the president, puisne judges appointed on the advice of theJudicial Service Commission); magistrate's courts
Malaysiacivil courts include Federal Court, Court of Appeal, HighCourt of Malaya on peninsula Malaysia, and High Court of Sabah andSarawak in states of Borneo (judges are appointed by the king on theadvice of the prime minister); sharia courts include Sharia AppealCourt, Sharia High Court, and Sharia Subordinate Courts atstate-level and deal with religious and family matters such ascustody, divorce, and inheritance only for Muslims; decisions ofsharia courts cannot be appealed to civil courts
MaldivesSupreme Court; Supreme Court judges are appointed by thepresident with approval of voting members of the People's Council;High Court; Trial Courts; all lower court judges are appointed bythe Judicial Service Commission
MaliSupreme Court or Cour Supreme
MaltaConstitutional Court; Court of First Instance; Court of Appealnote: magistrates and judges for the courts are appointed by thepresident on the advice of the prime minister
Marshall IslandsSupreme Court; High Court; Traditional Rights Court
MauritaniaSupreme Court or Cour Supreme; Court of Appeals; lowercourts
MauritiusSupreme Court
MayotteSupreme Court or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel
MexicoSupreme Court of Justice or Suprema Corte de Justicia de laNacion (justices or ministros are appointed by the president withconsent of the Senate)
Micronesia, Federated States ofSupreme Court
MoldovaSupreme Court; Constitutional Court (the sole authority forconstitutional judicature)
MonacoSupreme Court or Tribunal Supreme (judges appointed by themonarch on the basis of nominations by the National Council)
MongoliaSupreme Court (serves as appeals court for people's andprovincial courts but rarely overturns verdicts of lower courts;judges are nominated by the General Council of Courts and approvedby the president)
MontenegroConstitutional Court (five judges serve nine-year terms);Supreme Court (judges have life tenure)
MontserratEastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia,one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands andpresides over the High Court)
MoroccoSupreme Court (judges are appointed on the recommendation ofthe Supreme Council of the Judiciary, presided over by the monarch)
MozambiqueSupreme Court (the court of final appeal; some of itsprofessional judges are appointed by the president, and some areelected by the Assembly); other courts include an AdministrativeCourt, Constitutional Court, customs courts, maritime courts, courtsmarshal, labor courts
NamibiaSupreme Court (judges appointed by the president on therecommendation of the Judicial Service Commission)
NauruSupreme Court
NepalSupreme Court or Sarbochha Adalat (the president appoints thechief justice on recommendation of the Constitutional Council; thechief justice appoints other judges on the recommendation of theJudicial Council)
NetherlandsSupreme Court or Hoge Raad (justices are nominated forlife by the monarch)
New CaledoniaCourt of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; JointCommerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court
New ZealandSupreme Court; Court of Appeal; High Court; note -judges appointed by the governor general
NicaraguaSupreme Court or Corte Suprema de Justicia (16 judgeselected for five-year terms by the National Assembly)
NigerState Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel
NigeriaSupreme Court (judges recommended by the National JudicialCouncil and appointed by the president); Federal Court of Appeal(judges are appointed by the federal government from a pool ofjudges recommended by the National Judicial Council)
NiueSupreme Court of New Zealand; High Court of Niue
Norfolk IslandSupreme Court; Court of Petty Sessions
Northern Mariana IslandsCommonwealth Supreme Court; Superior Court;Federal District Court
NorwaySupreme Court or Hoyesterett (justices appointed by themonarch)
OmanSupreme Courtnote: the nascent civil court system, administered by region, hasjudges who practice secular and sharia law
PakistanSupreme Court (justices appointed by the president);Federal Islamic or Sharia Court
PalauSupreme Court; Court of Common Pleas; Land Court
PanamaSupreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (ninejudges appointed for 10-year terms); five superior courts; threecourts of appeal
Papua New GuineaSupreme Court (the chief justice is appointed bythe governor general on the proposal of the National ExecutiveCouncil after consultation with the minister responsible forjustice; other judges are appointed by the Judicial and LegalServices Commission)
ParaguaySupreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (ninejudges proposed by the Council of Magistrates or Consejo de laMagistratura, and approved by the Senate and president)
PeruSupreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (judgesare appointed by the National Council of the Judiciary)
PhilippinesSupreme Court (15 justices are appointed by thepresident on the recommendation of the Judicial and Bar Council andserve until 70 years of age); Court of Appeals; Sandigan-bayan(special court for hearing corruption cases of government officials)
Pitcairn IslandsMagistrate's Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal;judicial officers are appointed by the governor
PolandSupreme Court (judges are appointed by the president on therecommendation of the National Council of the Judiciary for anindefinite period); Constitutional Tribunal (judges are chosen bythe Sejm for nine-year terms)
PortugalSupreme Court (Supremo Tribunal de Justica); judgesappointed for life by the Conselho Superior da Magistratura
Puerto RicoSupreme Court; Appellate Court; Court of First Instancecomposed of two sections: a Superior Court and a Municipal Court(justices for all these courts appointed by the governor with theconsent of the Senate)
QatarCourts of First Instance, Appeal, and Cassation; anAdministrative Court and a Constitutional Court were established in2007; note - all judges are appointed by Amiri Decree based on therecommendation of the Supreme Judiciary Council for renewablethree-year terms
RomaniaSupreme Court of Justice (comprised of 11 judges appointedfor three-year terms by the president in consultation with theSuperior Council of Magistrates, which is comprised of the ministerof justice, the prosecutor general, two civil societyrepresentatives appointed by the Senate, and 14 judges andprosecutors elected by their peers); a separate body, theConstitutional Court, validates elections and makes decisionsregarding the constitutionality of laws, treaties, ordinances, andinternal rules of the Parliament; it is comprised of nine membersserving nine-year terms, with three members each appointed by thepresident, the Senate, and the Chamber of Deputies
RussiaConstitutional Court; Supreme Court; Supreme ArbitrationCourt; judges for all courts are appointed for life by theFederation Council on the recommendation of the president
RwandaSupreme Court; High Courts of the Republic; ProvincialCourts; District Courts; mediation committees
Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da CunhaSupreme Court; Courtof Appeal
Saint Kitts and NevisEastern Caribbean Supreme Court (consisting ofa Court of Appeal and a High Court; based on Saint Lucia; two judgesof the Supreme Court reside in Saint Kitts and Nevis); member of theCaribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)
Saint LuciaEastern Caribbean Supreme Court (consists of a HighCourt and a Court of Appeals; based on Saint Lucia; three judges ofthe Supreme Court reside in Saint Lucia); member of the CaribbeanCourt of Justice (CCJ)
Saint Pierre and MiquelonSuperior Tribunal of Appeals or TribunalSuperieur d'Appel
Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesEastern Caribbean Supreme Court(consisting of a High Court and Court of Appeals; based on SaintLucia; two judges of the Supreme Court reside in Saint Vincent andthe Grenadines)
SamoaCourt of Appeal; Supreme Court; District Court; Land andTitles Court
San MarinoCouncil of Twelve or Consiglio dei XII
Sao Tome and PrincipeSupreme Court (judges are appointed by theNational Assembly)
Saudi ArabiaSupreme Council of Justice
SenegalConstitutional Court; Council of State; Court of FinalAppeals or Cour de Cassation; Court of Appeals
Serbiacourts of general jurisdiction (municipal courts, districtcourts, Appellate Courts, the Supreme Court of Cassation); courts ofspecial jurisdiction (commercial courts, the High Commercial Court,the High Magistrates Court, the Administrative Court)
SeychellesCourt of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courtsare appointed by the president
Sierra LeoneSupreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court
SingaporeSupreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the presidentwith the advice of the prime minister, other judges are appointed bythe president with the advice of the chief justice); Court of Appeals
Sint MaartenCommon Court of Justice, Joint High Court of Justice(judges appointed by the monarch)
SlovakiaSupreme Court (judges are elected by the National Council);Constitutional Court (judges appointed by president from group ofnominees approved by the National Council); Special Court (judgeselected by a council of judges and appointed by president)
SloveniaSupreme Court (judges are elected by the National Assemblyon the recommendation of the Judicial Council); Constitutional Court(judges elected for nine-year terms by the National Assembly andnominated by the president)
Solomon IslandsCourt of Appeal
Somaliafollowing the breakdown of the central government, mostregions have reverted to local forms of conflict resolution, eithersecular, traditional Somali customary law, or sharia (Islamic) lawwith a provision for appeal of all sentences
South AfricaConstitutional Court; Supreme Court of Appeals; HighCourts; Magistrate Courts
SpainSupreme Court or Tribunal Supremo
Sri LankaSupreme Court; Court of Appeals; judges for both courtsare appointed by the president
SudanConstitutional Court of nine justices; National Supreme Court;National Courts of Appeal; other national courts; National JudicialService Commission will undertake overall management of the NationalJudiciary
SurinameCantonal Courts and a Court of Justice as an appellatecourt (justices are nominated for life); member of the CaribbeanCourt of Justice (CCJ)
SwazilandHigh Court; Supreme Court; judges for both courts areappointed by the monarch
SwedenSupreme Court or Hogsta Domstolen (judges are appointed bythe prime minister and the cabinet)
SwitzerlandFederal Supreme Court (judges elected for six-year termsby the Federal Assembly)
SyriaSupreme Judicial Council (appoints and dismisses judges;headed by the president); national level - Supreme ConstitutionalCourt (adjudicates electoral disputes and rules on constitutionalityof laws and decrees; justices appointed for four-year terms by thepresident); Court of Cassation; Appeals Courts (Appeals Courtsrepresent an intermediate level between the Court of Cassation andlocal level courts); local level - Magistrate Courts; Courts ofFirst Instance; Juvenile Courts; Customs Courts; specialized courts- Economic Security Courts (hear cases related to economic crimes);Supreme State Security Court (hear cases related to nationalsecurity); Personal Status Courts (religious; hear cases related tomarriage and divorce)
TaiwanJudicial Yuan (justices appointed by the president withconsent of the Legislative Yuan)
TajikistanSupreme Court (judges are appointed by the president)
TanzaniaPermanent Commission of Enquiry (official ombudsman); Courtof Appeal (consists of a chief justice and four judges); High Court(consists of a Jaji Kiongozi and 29 judges appointed by thepresident; holds regular sessions in all regions); District Courts;Primary Courts (limited jurisdiction and appeals can be made to thehigher courts)
ThailandConstitutional Court, Supreme Court of Justice, and SupremeAdministrative Court; all judges are appointed by the king; theking's appointments to the Constitutional Courtare made upon theadvice of the Senate; the nine Constitutional Court judges are drawnfrom the Supreme Court of Justice and Supreme Administrative Courtas well as from among substantive experts in law and social sciencesoutside the judiciary
Timor-LesteSupreme Court of Justice - constitution calls for onejudge to be appointed by National Parliament and rest appointed bySuperior Council for Judiciary; note - until Supreme Court isestablished, Court of Appeals is highest court
TogoCourt of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme
TokelauSupreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminaljurisdiction in Tokelau
TongaSupreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court ofAppeal (Chief Justice and high court justices from overseas chosenand approved by Privy Council)
Trinidad and TobagoSupreme Court of Judicature (comprised of theHigh Court of Justice and the Court of Appeals; the chief justice isappointed by the president after consultation with the primeminister and the leader of the opposition; other justices areappointed by the president on the advice of the Judicial and LegalService Commission); the highest court of appeal is the PrivyCouncil in London; member of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)
TunisiaCourt of Cassation or Cour de Cassation
TurkeyConstitutional Court; High Court of Appeals (Yargitay);Council of State (Danistay); Court of Accounts (Sayistay); MilitaryHigh Court of Appeals; Military High Administrative Court
TurkmenistanSupreme Court (judges are appointed by the president)
Turks and Caicos IslandsSupreme Court; Court of Appeal
TuvaluHigh Court (a chief justice visits twice a year to presideover its sessions; its rulings can be appealed to the Court ofAppeal in Fiji); eight Island Courts (with limited jurisdiction)
UgandaCourt of Appeal (judges are appointed by the president andapproved by the legislature); High Court (judges are appointed bythe president)
UkraineSupreme Court; Constitutional Court
United Arab EmiratesUnion Supreme Court (judges are appointed bythe president)
United KingdomSupreme Court of the UK (established in October 2009taking over appellate jurisdiction formerly vested in the House ofLords); Senior Courts of England and Wales (comprising the Court ofAppeal, the High Court of Justice, and the Crown Courts); Court ofJudicature (Northern Ireland); Scotland's Court of Session and HighCourt of the Justiciary
United StatesSupreme Court (nine justices; nominated by thepresident and confirmed with the advice and consent of the Senate;appointed to serve for life); United States Courts of Appeal; UnitedStates District Courts; State and County Courts
UruguaySupreme Court (judges are nominated by the president andelected for 10-year terms by the General Assembly)
UzbekistanSupreme Court (judges are nominated by the president andconfirmed by the Supreme Assembly)
VanuatuSupreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the presidentafter consultation with the prime minister and the leader of theopposition, three other justices are appointed by the president onthe advice of the Judicial Service Commission)
VenezuelaSupreme Tribunal of Justice or Tribunal Supremo deJusticia (32 magistrates are elected by the National Assembly for asingle 12-year term)
VietnamSupreme People's Court (chief justice is elected by theNational Assembly on the recommendation of the president for afive-year term)
Virgin IslandsUS District Court of the Virgin Islands (under ThirdCircuit jurisdiction); Superior Court of the Virgin Islands (judgesappointed by the governor for 10-year terms)
Wallis and Futunajustice generally administered under French law bythe high administrator, but the three traditional kings administercustomary law and there is a magistrate in Mata-Utu; a court ofappeal is located in Noumea, New Caledonia
YemenSupreme Court
ZambiaSupreme Court (the final court of appeal; justices areappointed by the president); High Court (has unlimited jurisdictionto hear civil and criminal cases)
ZimbabweSupreme Court; High Court
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@2095
Field Listing :: Labor force
This entry contains the total labor force figure.Country Comparison to the WorldCountry
Labor force
Afghanistan15 million (2004 est.)
Albania1.1 million (2009 est.)
Algeria9.877 million (2010 est.)
American Samoa17,630 (2005)
Andorra42,220 (2008)
Angola7.977 million (2010 est.)
Anguilla6,049 (2001)
Antigua and Barbuda30,000 (1991)
Argentina 16.62 million note: urban areas only (2010 est.)
Armenia1.481 million (2007 est.)
Aruba41,500 (2004 est.)
Australia11.62 million (2010 est.)
Austria3.63 million (2010 est.)
Azerbaijan5.874 million (2010 est.)
Bahamas, The184,000 (2009)
Bahrain611,000note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national(2010 est.)
Bangladesh73.87 millionnote: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman,Qatar, and Malaysia; workers' remittances estimated at $10.9 billionin 2009-10 (2010 est.)
Barbados175,000 (2007 est.)
Belarus5 million (2009)
Belgium5.02 million (2010 est.)
Belize120,500note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel(2008 est.)
Benin3.662 million (2007 est.)
Bermuda38,360 (2004)
Bhutan 299,900 note: major shortage of skilled labor (2008)
Bolivia4.614 million (2010 est.)
Bosnia and Herzegovina1.863 million (2007)
Botswana685,300 formal sector employees (2007)
Brazil103.6 million (2010 est.)
British Virgin Islands12,770 (2004)
Brunei188,800 (2008 est.)
Bulgaria2.61 million (2010 est.)
Burkina Faso6.668 millionnote: a large part of the male labor force migrates annually toneighboring countries for seasonal employment (2007)
Burma31.68 million (2010 est.)
Burundi4.245 million (2007)
Cambodia8 million (2009 est.)
Cameroon7.836 million (2010 est.)
Canada18.59 million (2010 est.)
Cape Verde196,100 (2007)
Cayman Islands 39,000 note: nearly 55% are non-nationals (2007)
Central African Republic1.926 million (2007)
Chad4.293 million (2007)
Chile7.58 million (2010 est.)
China819.5 million (2010 est.)
Christmas IslandNA
Cocos (Keeling) IslandsNA
Colombia21.27 million (2010 est.)
Comoros268,500 (2007 est.)
Congo, Democratic Republic of the23.53 million (2007 est.)
Congo, Republic of the1.514 million (2007)
Cook Islands6,820 (2001)
Costa Rica2.17 millionnote: this official estimate excludes Nicaraguans living in CostaRica (2010 est.)
Cote d'Ivoire7.617 million (2010 est.)
Croatia1.762 million (2010 est.)
Cuba5.164 millionnote: state sector 78%, non-state sector 22% (2010 est.)
Curacao63,000 (2008 est.)
Cyprus400,000 (2010 est.)
Czech Republic5.37 million (2010 est.)
Denmark2.82 million (2010 est.)
Djibouti351,700 (2007)
Dominica25,000 (2000 est.)
Dominican Republic4.498 million (2010 est.)
Ecuador4.59 million (urban) (2010 est.)
Egypt26.1 million (2010 est.)
El Salvador2.94 million (2010 est.)
Equatorial Guinea195,200 NA (2007)
Eritrea1.935 million NA (2007)
Estonia688,000 (2010 est.)
Ethiopia37.9 million (2007)
European Union225.2 million (2010 est.)
Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)1,724 (1996) (1996)
Faroe Islands34,680 (November 2008)
Fiji335,000 (2007 est.)
Finland2.68 million (2010 est.)
France28.21 million (2010 est.)
French Polynesia116,000 (2007)
Gabon712,000 (2010 est.)
Gambia, The777,100 (2007)
Gaza Strip339,000 (2009)
Georgia1.918 million (2007 est.)
Germany43.35 million (2010 est.)
Ghana10.56 million (2010 est.)
Gibraltar12,690 (including non-Gibraltar laborers) (2001)
Greece5.05 million (2010 est.)
Greenland28,240 (January 2009)
Grenada42,300 (1996)
Guam82,950 (2007 est.)
Guatemala4.26 million (2010 est.)
Guernsey31,470 (March 2006)
Guinea4.392 million (2007 est.)
Guinea-Bissau632,700 (2007)