Mission to Benin

The Court de cassation, represented by Ms Caroline Azar, Judge Referee at the First Civil Chamber, special advisor of the First President, took part in the 15th training session of the Association Africaine des Hautes Juridictions Francophones (AA-HJF), to be held in Porto-Novo, Benin, from 24 to 27 July 2023.

The three-day high-level conference brought together the supreme courts (judicial, administrative, constitutional and audit) of Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Togo, Congo, Niger and Cameroon. The opening conference was introduced by the Benin Minister of Justice. The session ended with a speech by Mr Victor Dassi Adossou, President of the Supreme Court of Benin, who is also President of AA-HJF and AHJUCAF.

In the course of these very rich discussions, Ms Caroline Azar presented the technique of drafting rulings before the courts of cassation, a subject that has given rise to several waves of reforms at the Court. Then, she explained the methodology of enhanced reasoning, developing the conclusions of the Cour de cassation's working group on this subject.

This meeting illustrates the close cooperation between the Court of Cassation and the networks of the French-speaking world, as well as the Supreme Court of Benin. President Adossou, President of the AHJUCAF, chaired the AHJUCAF's last Board meeting at the Cour de cassation in November 2022, during which he met the First President Christophe Soulard. In addition, exchanges and training courses for judges take place every year at the Cour de cassation.