Constitutional Tribunal of Ecuador

Ecuador

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The Constitutional Tribunal of Ecuador (Spanish: Tribunal Constitucional del Ecuador) is the highest court in Ecuador dealing with constitutional issues. It was created as part of Ecuador's 1996 constitutional reform package. It is composed of nine magistrates.

The Constitutional Tribunal 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 Constitutional Tribunal.^[1]

In 2007, the Tribunal was involved in a confrontation with newly elected President Rafael Correa. On March 9, the Tribunal 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 Tribunal's rulings have often been ignored by Ecuador's presidents and Congress.^[2]

See also

• Case No. 111-97-TC, a decision handed down by the Constitutional Tribunal in 1997 which decriminalized homosexuality in Ecuador.
• Constitution
• Constitutionalism
• Constitutional economics
• Jurisprudence
• Judiciary
• Rule of law
• Rule According to Higher Law

References

1. ^ "Ecuador faces institutional crisis". Transparency International. February 2005. http://www.transparency.org/news_room/in_focus/2005/crisis_ecuador1. Retrieved 2008-03-27. 
2. ^ "Ecuador's political crisis deepens after president is given referendum warning" (Press release). Associated Press. 2007-03-11. http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2007/03/11/2003351850. Retrieved 2008-03-27. 

External links

• Official website of the Constitutional Tribunal of Ecuador