Студенттік үкімет органдары: Студенттік соттар және конституциялық кеңестер

Form of student government

A student court is a type of judicial system occasionally seen in student governments. Student courts vary in size and functions, but they are most often engaged in conflict resolution and interpretation of student bylaws and constitutions. Names of student courts vary, with the body variously referred to as the "Student Court," "Judicial Council", the "Judicial Board", the "Supreme Court," or others. Typically, however, student governments only possess legislative and executive branches. Student courts are a less common feature of student governments. The methods of selection for student courts also vary: at some institutions, the elected student body president nominates and appoints student court members with the consent of the elected student representative assembly; at others, a search committee interviews potential members who are subsequently nominated and officially appointed; at still other institutions, the sitting members of the student court actually participate in the process of nominating and selecting new court members.

Arguments in favour of having student courts often hinge on the idea of separation of powers, on the basis that the legislative bodies of student governments should not have the power to police themselves. Other arguments in favour include having the judicial system removed from partisan politics, having a neutral body to make decisions on issues such as election appeals, and greater transparency. Arguments against having student courts often hinge on practicality, with critics saying that students are not necessarily qualified to make judicial decisions, or that university ombudspersons are better placed to fulfill the same role. Other arguments include a lack of accountability from student courts as well the additional bureaucracy that is created and the cost that it entails. Some critics also argue that placing power in the hands of unelected officials is undemocratic.

The judicial body of the Alma Mater Society of the University of British Columbia is the Student Court. The Student Court is granted the power to "exercise disciplinary powers over the Society’s organizations and members." It is composed of 5 judges and two alternate judges, all appointed by the AMS Council, with the Chief Justice also being named by the AMS Council. The Chief Justice must be a law student. The decisions of the Court only become binding once the AMS Council ratifies them. The Student Court was created in the 1970s, but had been inactive from 2009 to 2015, until the AMS Council filling the positions again.

The judicial body of the Carleton University Students' Association is the Constitutional Board. The CUSA constitution gives the Constitutional Board the authority to "rule that any act of Students' Council, its members, its officers, or its agents is in contravention of the Constitution, any Bylaw or Policy of the Association." The Constitutional Board is composed of 5 members appointed by the Students' Council, of which 4 must be students and the fifth is the university's ombudsperson, who acts as chair. There are also two alternate members. Constitutional Board members serve one year terms, and cannot be members of the Students' Council. Meetings of the Board are held publicly, and decisions of the Board cannot be appealed.

The constitution of the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa did not formally recognise a judicial body for the Federation, but, the powers of the Constitutional Committee closely resemble those of a student court. The Committee had the power to make binding decisions, but those decisions could be overturned by the Board of Administration through a simple majority vote. The Constitutional Committee was composed of 5 members of the Board of Administration, as well as two alternate members (also members of the Board of Administration) in the case of a conflict of interest. The members of the Constitutional Committee chose a member from among themselves to act as chair. Meetings of the Committee were held in camera. The SFUO used to have a judicial system (originally known as the Student Court, and then the Student Arbitration Committee) independent from its BoA, but that body was abolished in 2011, and its powers transferred to the newly created Constitutional Committee.

The judicial body of the University of Alberta Students' Union is the Discipline, Interpretation, and Enforcement Board (also known as the DIE Board). The DIE Board is governed by the union's Bylaw 1500, which defines the Board as "the organ of the Students’ Union responsible for the interpretation and enforcement of Students’ Union legislation," and gives the Board scope to rule on complaints made regarding possible constitutional violations, interpretation of union legislation and rulings made by the elections office. The DIE Board is composed of one Chief Tribune, two Associate Chief Tribunes and 5 to 11 additional tribunes. The tribunes are appointed through recommendation of the Tribune Selection Committee and ratification by a 2/3rds vote of the Students' Council. Tribunes cannot be members of the Council, members of Council committees or be an employee of the Union, and hold office until they graduate, resign or are impeached by a 2/3rds vote of the Students' Council.

The University of Calgary Students' Union has two judicial bodies: the Review Board, acting as the lower student court, and the Tribunal, acting as the higher student court. The Review Board consists of 9 people, appointed by the Student Legislative Committee from a list provided by the Nominations Committee. Of the 9 members of the Review Board, at least 5 must be students and at least 2 must be non students. The chair of the Review Board must be one of the students. The Tribunal consists of 5 people, appointed by the SLC from a list provided by the Nominations Committee. Of the 5 members of the Tribunal, at least one must be a student and at least one must be a non student. The chair of the Tribunal must be one of the non students. Members of the Review Board and Tribunal serve two year terms, unless during their terms they fail to meet one of a list of qualifications, including having been a member of SLC, the University of Calgary Board of Governors, Senate, or General Faculties Council, being an executive for a student club, being an employee of the Union and taking part in any student election (other than just voting).

The judicial body of the University of Manitoba Students' Union is the Judicial Board. The decisions of the Judicial Board cannot be overturned by any other UMSU body. The Judicial Board is composed of one UMSU member acting as Chair, three Councillors, and five additional UMSU members. The members of the Judicial Board are appointed by the Selections Committee, and cannot be employees of the Union or executives.

Prior to January 2016, the judicial body of the National University of Singapore Students' Union (NUSSU) was the Adjudication Committee (AC). The Adjudication Committee was established in August 2012, at the recommendation of the Constitution Review Commission. The Commission was convened to carry out a comprehensive redrafting of the Union's Constitution, and after "look[ing] into the governance structure of other Student Unions, including foreign ones", it was "[i]n particular impressed with the Adjudication Committee in the City University of Hong Kong Students' Union". Citing the Singapore Court of Appeal's dictum in Chng Suan Tze v Minister for Home Affairs that "all power has legal limits", it envisaged the Adjudication Committee as "an organ within the Union governance structure to enforce such legal limits and resolve disputes between Constituent Clubs or members". The Adjudication Committee's functions were to adjudicate disputes within the Union, interpret the Union's Constitution and hear appeals arising from disciplinary actions. During its three year existence, the Adjudication Committee made two reported decisions. In Re Yale NUS College Students [2014] NUSSU AC 2, it decided by a 5 2 majority that, as a matter of constitutional interpretation, Yale NUS College students were not Union members. One dissenting panel member wrote that "YNC students should be integrated into the Union so as to prevent segregation of the student populace". The Adjudication Committee was abolished in January 2016 "because its roles and responsibilities are redundant". In October 2018, NUSSU invited applications to join the Adjudication Committee.

Since January 2016, the judicial power of the Union has been vested in the Council, together with the Union's legislative power and executive authority.

The Union Election Committee has the power to adjudicate all disputes raised by candidates in the Executive Committee Elections or by constituent clubs' election committees.