Constitutional Court of Ecuador

Last updated
Corte Constitucional (sello).svg

The Constitutional Court of Ecuador (Spanish: Corte Constitucional del Ecuador), previously the Constitutional Tribunal of Ecuador (Tribunal Constitucional del Ecuador), is the constitutional court of Ecuador.

Contents

History

The Court was created as part of Ecuador's 1996 constitutional reform package. It is composed of nine magistrates.

The Court has been affected by Ecuador's recent political crises. In 2005, President Lucio Gutiérrez manipulated his party's modest advantage in Congress to replace numerous justices, including eight of nine members of the Court . [1]

In 2007, the Court was involved in a confrontation with newly elected President Rafael Correa. On March 9, the Court warned Correa that he would be acting illegally if he ignored its eventual ruling on the constitutionality of a national referendum. Correa responded that the Tribunal was "dominated by the political parties" and that it had no authority to act on the issue. The Court's rulings have often been ignored by Ecuador's presidents and Congress. [2]

Notable decisions

In the 1997 case 111-97-TC, the Court decriminalized homosexuality in Ecuador. In the 2019 case 11-18-CN/19, [3] the Court legalized same-sex marriage in Ecuador.

On May 29, 2018, the court ruled in case 1692-12-EP in favor of a lesbian couple, allowing them to register their child in the Civil Registry with both their surnames. [4]

On February 5, 2024, in the case 67-23-IN/24, the court ruled that active euthanasia is legal. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Politics of Ecuador</span>

The politics of Ecuador are multi-party. The central government polity is a quadrennially elected presidential, unicameral representative democracy. The President of Ecuador is head of state and head of the army on a multi-party system, and leads a cabinet with further executive power. Legislative power is not limited to the National Assembly, as it may to a lesser degree be exercised by the executive which consists of the President convening an appointed executive cabinet. Subsequent acts of the National Assembly are supreme over Executive Orders where sufficient votes have been cast by the legislators. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. Ecuador is also considered a constitutional republic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supreme Tribunal of Justice (Venezuela)</span> Venezuelan supreme court

The Supreme Justice Tribunal is the highest court of law in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and is the head of the judicial branch. As the independence of the Venezuelan judiciary under the regime of Nicolás Maduro is questioned, there have recently been many disputes as to whether this court is legitimate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colombian Constitution of 1991</span> Colombias current Constitution

The Political Constitution of Colombia of 1991, is the Constitution of the Republic of Colombia. It was promulgated in Constitutional Gazette number 114 on Thursday, July 4, 1991, and is also known as the Constitution of Human Rights. It replaced the Political Constitution of 1886 and was issued during the presidency of the liberal César Gaviria, with ideas from the also liberal Luis Carlos Galán.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in Ecuador</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Ecuador have evolved significantly in the past decades. Both male and female forms of same-sex sexual activity are legal in Ecuador and same-sex couples can enter into civil unions and same-sex marriages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supreme Court of Argentina</span> Highest court in Argentina

The Supreme Court of Argentina, officially known as the Supreme Court of Justice of the Argentine Nation, is the highest court of law of the Argentine Republic. It was inaugurated on 15 January 1863. However, during much of the 20th century, the Court and the Argentine judicial system in general, lacked autonomy from the executive power. The Court was reformed in 2003 by the decree 222/03.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rafael Correa</span> President of Ecuador from 2007 to 2017

Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado is an Ecuadorian politician and economist who served as President of Ecuador from 2007 to 2017. The leader of the PAIS Alliance political movement from its foundation until 2017, Correa is a democratic socialist and his administration focused on the implementation of left-wing policies. Internationally, he served as president pro tempore of the UNASUR. Since 2017, he has been living in exile in Belgium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitutional Court of Spain</span> Court interpreting the Constitution of Spain

The Constitutional Court is the supreme interpreter of the Spanish Constitution, with the power to determine the constitutionality of acts and statutes made by any public body, central, regional, or local in Spain. It is defined in Part IX of the Constitution of Spain, and further governed by Organic Laws 2/1979, 8/1984, 4/1985, 6/1988, 7/1999 and 1/2000. The Court is the "supreme interpreter" of the Constitution, but since the Court is not a part of the Spanish Judiciary, the Supreme Court is the highest court for all judicial matters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in Colombia</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Colombia have advanced significantly in the 21st century, and are now quite progressive. Consensual same-sex sexual activity in Colombia was decriminalized in 1981. Between February 2007 and April 2008, three rulings of the Constitutional Court granted registered same-sex couples the same pension, social security and property rights as registered heterosexual couples.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Colombia since 28 April 2016 in accordance with a 6–3 ruling from the Constitutional Court of Colombia that banning same-sex marriage is unconstitutional under the Constitution of Colombia. The decision took effect immediately, and made Colombia the fourth country in South America to legalize same-sex marriage, after Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. The first same-sex marriage was performed in Cali on 24 May 2016. Colombia has also recognised same-sex de facto unions, providing some of the rights and benefits of marriage, since 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in Peru</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Peru face some legal challenges not experienced by other residents. Same-sex sexual activity among consenting adults is legal. However, households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex couples.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Ecuador since 8 July 2019 in accordance with a Constitutional Court ruling issued on 12 June 2019 that the ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional under the Constitution of Ecuador. The ruling took effect upon publication in the government gazette on 8 July. Ecuador became the fifth country in South America to allow same-sex couples to marry, after Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Colombia, but adoption by married couples remains restricted to opposite-sex couples. The country has also recognized same-sex civil unions since 2008.

María Victoria Calle Correa is a Magistrate of the Constitutional Court of Colombia, serving since April 2009. Calle is the second female magistrate. A lawyer from the University of Medellín, she specialized in Administrative Law from Saint Thomas Aquinas University and the University of Salamanca, and received a Master's in Administrative Law from Externado University. Prior to her nomination, she worked in Previsora Seguros S.A., and insurance provider, since 2004, and was its vice president of legal affairs since 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitutional Court of Peru</span>

The Peruvian Constitutional Court or Constitutional Tribunal is an independent constitutional agency of Peru that was established in the 1993 Constitution of Peru that was created during the government of Alberto Fujimori. The court's members are nominated by the Congress of Peru; these nominations sometimes lack transparency and are based on political favors that nominees can provide to legislators. Since May 2022, the Constitutional Court has been used to provide institutional strength to Fujimorists in Congress, according to IDL-Reporteros.

Same-sex marriage is legal in the following countries: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Uruguay. Same-sex marriage is recognized, but not performed in Israel.

The Supreme Tribunal of Justice of Venezuela (TSJ) in exile is an institution that some, including the Organization of American States, consider to be the legitimate highest court of law in Venezuela and the head of the judicial branch, as opposed to the Supreme Tribunal of Justice. It was established on 21 July 2017 following the 2017 Venezuelan constitutional crisis. The TSJ's 33 members have been based in Chile, Colombia, Panama, and the United States due to the political crisis in Venezuela.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marisol Peña</span> Chilean jurist and educator

Marisol Peña Torres is a Chilean jurist and educator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 Ecuadorian constitutional referendum</span>

A constitutional referendum was held in Ecuador on 5 February 2023, alongside local elections. The binding consultation was called on 29 November 2022 by President Guillermo Lasso. Voters were asked to approve or reject a total of eight questions surrounding changes to the Constitution of Ecuador. Soon after the referendum, Reuters, Al Jazeera, CNN en Español and the Financial Times projected the failure of all eight of its proposals, with president Guillermo Lasso eventually conceding defeat. Turnout for the referendum was estimated at 80.74%.

The Judgment of the Constitutional Court of Peru over the motion of confidence proposed on 17 November 2022 is a legal decision of the Constitutional Court of Peru adopted by majority on 30 May 2023, in response to the jurisdictional claim filed by the Congress of Peru against the administration of then-President Pedro Castillo for the motion of confidence raised on 17 November 2022 by its Prime Minister Aníbal Torres to obtain from Congress the approval of Bill 3570/2022-PE that proposed repealing the Law No. 31399, and whose "rejection" had been interpreted by the executive power as a denial of the same, according to the agreement adopted in the meeting of the council of ministers on 24 November 2022.

The Judgment of the Constitutional Court of Peru over the dissolution of Congress on 30 September 2019 was court ruling determining that the actions of President of Peru Martín Vizcarra dissolving the Congress of Peru were legal within the laws outlined in the Constitution of Peru. The judgement would build upon previous rulings, determining that Congress could not regulate the motion of no confidence.

<i>Satya case</i> 2018 court case in Ecuador regarding same-sex parenting

Case 1692-12-EP, also known as the Satya case, is an Ecuadorian court case of alleged gender discrimination involving the name of a little girl. Her two mothers were prevented from registering her in the Civil Registry of Ecuador using both their surnames. The legal case is presented as a case of gender discrimination due to her status as a child of a same-sex parent household.

References

  1. "Ecuador faces institutional crisis". Transparency International. February 2005. Archived from the original on April 10, 2008. Retrieved March 27, 2008.
  2. "Ecuador's political crisis deepens after president is given referendum warning" (Press release). Associated Press. March 11, 2007. Retrieved March 27, 2008.
  3. "CASO No. 11-18-CN (matrimonio igualitario)" (PDF). Retrieved June 15, 2019.
  4. "Sentencia de la Corte Constitucional en favor de Satya Bicknell-Rothon constituye un logro para la igualdad en derechos". Ombudsman's Office of Ecuador (in Spanish). June 26, 2018. Archived from the original on June 29, 2018. Retrieved August 27, 2024.
  5. "Corte Constitucional del Ecuador on X".