Lebanon is currently facing a situation that had not been anticipated, when the Lebanese Constitution was drafted in 1926 or in any of its subsequent revisions: for months now, and for the first time in its history, the country has neither had a president, nor a sitting government. The cabinet of Prime Minister Najib Mikati is acting in a caretaker function. Until the deadlock is solved, the question presents itself as to what powers the caretaker government has during a presidential vacancy, according to the Lebanese Constitution. Can it pass laws, issue decrees or sign international treaties? Can it schedule governmental meetings at all? What does the Constitution say and how are the relevant articles to be interpreted?

This paper seeks to provide an overview of the decisive provisions of the Constitution and their respective interpretations.

The report is the result of research done before and after a panel discussion organized by the KAS Rule of Law Programme Middle East & North Africa on Art. 62 of the Lebanese Constitution on December 6th, 2022. The panelists were Me. Rina Constantine and Me. Edgard Abawatt, both constitutional experts in their own right. The report was originally written by Marilyn Saliba and Patrick Saad, who were interning at the KAS office at that time, and edited by Valeska Heldt and Claudia Hainthaler.