Council of State (Dutch: , , ), is the supreme administrative court of Belgium. Its functions include assisting the executive with legal advice and being the supreme court for administrative justice. Its members are (for the most part) high level jurists. The Council is located in the Palace of the Marquess of Assche built by Alphonse Balat. History After Belgium gained its independence from the Netherlands, the Belgian government was hesitant to create a Council of State, given the perceived abuse of the Dutch Council of State; thus, no Council of State was created in Belgium. After World War II the need arose for a Supreme Administrative Court, and such an organ was created by the law of 23 December 1946 as a body that administers justice. It does not officially belong to the judiciary; rather, it falls under the jurisdiction of the minister of the interior. Since then, the Belgian Constitution has been amended to include the existence of the Council of State. Article 160 of the Belgian Constitution provides that there is, for all of Belgium, one Council of State, the composition, competence and functioning of which are regulated by law. The organisation and functioning of the Council of State are presently provided for by the organic laws on the Council of State, coordinated by the Royal Decree of 12 January 1973. Organisation and competence Organisation The Council of State comprises the council, the auditeurs' office, the coordination office, the registry and the administrative staff. The Council is further divided into a Legislative section and an Administrative litigation section. The Council has 44 judges: a First President a President 14 Presidents of Chambers 28 Councillors The judges themselves elect their Presidents. Chamber Presidents are elected from those judges who are at least three years on the bench, Presidents and the First President are elected from judges at least eleven years with the Council of State of which at least five years as a judge. The aforementioned judges are appointed for life by the King out of a list containing three names nominated by the Council of State itself. If the nominating list was made unanimous by the Council of State, the person topping the list will be appointed unless the minister of the interior vetoes the appointment because the conditions of the law are not met. If the minister accepts these nominations then he/she proceeds to notify the