The Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania () is the highest court of Albania and is the final court of appeals in the country's judicial system. It is composed of seventeen judges: the Chief Justice and sixteen Members.
The Supreme Court is the highest court in the judicial branch of the country with its premises located in Tirana. Its main mission is to review the decisions of lower instance courts upon the appeal from one of the parties. It reviews the matter at hand dealing with only with issues of law, without judging the facts, thus guaranteeing through its jurisprudence uniformity in the application of the law and a unified judicial practice.
History
The historical context of the development of the current Supreme Court can be divided in the following time periods.
1912—1920
The Declaration of Independence marked the first steps in institution-building for the nascent Albanian state. The Assembly of Vlora and the Government headed by Ismail Qemali amongst other important initiatives, such as the creation of the main legislative and executive institutions, also focused on organizing the Judiciary among Western European lines.
Thus on May 10, 1913 "The Canon of Jury" was approved; this first Act constituted a cornerstone for the organization and functioning of the courts in the Albanian judicial system. The "Canon of Jury" envisaged the creation of the Dictation Court, sub-districts Courts of First Instance Courts, which would be competent for civil matters and minor offenses, as well as the Peoples’ Court, composed of a jury of common people who would adjudicate matters in criminal cases.
According to historical data, the jury system was implemented only once for a trial in the Province of Elbasan, but it failed to meet expectations and thus it was repealed on June 4, 1914. On that same day a new law was promulgated, which amended the Appeals process by establishing the Primary Appeals Court to serve as a corts of Second Instance and a supreme Dictation Court.
1920—1939
During the interbellum period 1920-1939, the most important issues for the strengthening of the rule of law in Albania concerned legal reform, the reorganization of the Judiciary and the increase of professional competency of its employees. It was during this period that the organization and functioning of the Judiciary in Albania was consolidated and its role strengthened.
In 1925, the Fundamental Statute of the Albanian Republic was approved by Parliament, stipulating in Article 102 that any Judge or Prosecutor would be appointed by the President of the Republic on the proposal of the Minister of Justice.
During the Albanian Republic, the Judicial system was organized as follows:
Religious Courts - each recognized religion had its independent court. The decisions taken by these courts were enforced by the court execution offices included in the sub-district courts. Special Military Court - the first such court was created in the city of Shkodra. Its composition involved three Officers, two Lay judges and a civil Prosecutor. The jurisdiction of this Court covered all matters related to the disruption of public order, military officers who had fought against the Republican Guard as well as all those citizens who opposed the orders of government officials. Special Political Court - this court was headed by an officer and was composed of two judges and two other officers, elected by the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Internal Affairs respectively. The decisions issued by this court needed to be approved by the Minister of the Interior to become final and binding, whereas in the cases when the death penalty was to be imposed the approval of the Chair of Parliament was required. State Supreme Court - an ad hoc court composed of five Senators and the Heads of the Dictation Courts, competent to judge Minister's and high state officials’ abuse of power, political crimes and allegations of "High Treason" against the State or the Sovereign.
In 1928, Albania transitioned from a Republican government into a Monarchy. As part of this Constitutional transformation, there were also significant changes in the organization of the Albanian Judiciary. For instance, the law “On the organization of the Judiciary“, approved on 1 April 1929, sanctioned the division of courts as follows: