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The Global Gender Equality Constitutional Database is a repository of gender equality related provisions in 194 constitutions from around the world. The Database was updated in partnership with the International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) and with support from the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) and the Government of Japan. Experience its wealth and depth of information by starting your search now.
Jurisdiction and Access
- English
(1) An appeal may be made from a decision of the Court of Appeal to the Sovereign in Council —
(a) with the leave of the Court of Appeal —
(i) in the case of a final decision on a question as to the interpretation or application of this Constitution; or
(ii) in the case of a final decision in proceedings under Division 5 (Enforcement of the Bill of Rights) of Part II;
… (Sec. 139)
Jurisdiction and Access
- English1. Subject to the provisions of sections 25(2), 47(8)(b), 56(4), 65(5), 123(7)(b) and 124 of this Constitution, any person who alleges that any provision of this Constitution (other than a provision of Chapter II3) has been or is being contravened may, if he has a relevant interest, apply to the High Court for a declaration and for relief under this section.
2. The High Court shall have jurisdiction on an application made under this section to determine whether any provision of this Constitution (other than a provision of Chapter II) has been or is being contravened and to make a declaration accordingly.
3. Where the High Court makes a declaration under this section that a provision of this Constitution has been or is being contravened and the person on whose application the declaration is made has also applied for relief, the High Court may grant to that person such remedy as it considers appropriate, being a remedy available generally under any law in proceedings in the High Court.
4. The Chief Justice may make provision, or authorise the making of provision, with respect to the practice and procedure of the High Court in relation to the jurisdiction and powers conferred on the court by or under this section, including provision with respect to the time within which any application under this section may be made.
5. A person shall be regarded as having a relevant interest for the purpose of an application under this section only if the contravention of this Constitution alleged by him is such as to affect his interests.
6. The rights conferred on a person by this section to apply for a declaration and relief in respect of an alleged contravention of this Constitution shall be in addition to any other action in respect of the same matter that may be available to that person under any other law or any rule of law.
7. Nothing in this section shall confer jurisdiction on the High Court to hear or determine any such question as is referred to in section 44 of this Constitution. (Sec. 119)
Jurisdiction and Access
- English1. If, in the course of litigation, a court has reasoned and founded doubts about the constitutionality of a law or a legislative decree, the application of which is relevant to its decision, it shall request in writing the decision of the Constitutional Court about the validity of the rule in question.
… (Art. 100) - Catalan1. Si en la tramitació d'un procés un tribunal té dubtes raonables i fonamentats sobre la constitucionalitat d'una llei o d'un decret legislatiu que sigui d'aplicació imprescindible per a la solució de la causa, formularà escrit davant del Tribunal Constitucional demanant el seu pronunciament sobre la validesa de la norma afectada.
… (Art. 100)
Jurisdiction and Access
- English1. The President of the Republic may ask the Constitutional Court to conduct a prior review of the constitutionality of any rule contained in legislation that has been submitted for enactment, any international treaty submitted to him for ratification or any international agreement sent to him for signature.
2. One tenth of the Members of the National Assembly in full exercise of their office may also request a prior review of the constitutionality of any rule contained in legislation that has been submitted for enactment.
… (Art. 228) - Portuguese1. O Presidente da República pode requerer ao Tribunal Constitucional a apreciação preventiva da constitucionalidade de qualquer norma constante de diploma legal que tenha sido submetido para promulgação, tratado internacional que lhe tenha sido submetido para ratificação ou acordo internacional que lhe tenha sido remetido para assinatura.
2. Pode ainda requerer a apreciação preventiva da constitucionalidade de qualquer norma constante de diploma legal que tenha sido submetido à promulgação um décimo dos Deputados à Assembleia Nacional em efectividade de funções.
... (Art. 228)
Jurisdiction and Access
- English
The Supreme Federal Court is responsible, essentially, for safeguarding the Constitution, and it is within its competence:
I – to institute legal proceeding and trial, in the first instance, of:
a) direct actions of unconstitutionality of a federal or state law or normative act, and declaratory actions of constitutionality of a federal law or normative act;
b) in common criminal offenses, the President of the Republic, the Vice-President, the members of the National Congress, its own Justices and the Attorney-General of the Republic;
c) in common criminal offenses and crimes of malversation, the Ministers of State and the Commanders of the Navy, the Army, and the Air Force, except as provided in article 52, I, the members of the Superior Courts, those of the Federal Audit Court and the heads of permanent diplomatic missions;
d) habeas corpus, when the petitioner is any one of the persons referred to in the preceding subitems; the writ of mandamus and habeas data against acts of the President of the Republic, of the Directing Boards of the Chamber of Deputies and of the Federal Senate, of the Federal Audit Court, of the Attorney-General of the Republic and of the Supreme Federal Court itself;
e) litigation between a foreign State or an international organization and the Union, a state, the Federal District or a territory;
f) disputes and conflicts between the Union and the states, the Union and the Federal District, or between one another, including the respective indirect administration bodies;
g) extradition requested by a foreign state;
h) (revoked);
i) habeas corpus, when the constraining party is a Superior Court, or when the constraining party or the petitioner is an authority or employee whose acts are directly subject to the jurisdiction of the Supreme Federal Court, or in the case of a crime, subject to the same jurisdiction in one sole instance;
j) criminal review of and actions to overrule its final judgements;
l) claims for the preservation of its powers and guarantee of the authority of its decisions;
m) enforcement of court decisions in the cases where it has original competence, the delegation of duties to perform procedural acts being allowed;
n) a suit in which all members of the judicature are directly or indirectly involved, and a suit in which more than half of the members of the court of origin are disqualified or have a direct or indirect interest;
o) conflicts of powers between the Superior Court of Justice and any other courts, between Superior Courts, or between the latter and any other court;
p) petitions of provisional remedy in direct actions of unconstitutionality;
q) writs of injunction, when drawing up of the regulation is the responsibility of the President of the Republic, of the National Congress, of the Chamber of Deputies, of the Federal Senate, of the Directing Boards of one of these legislative houses, of the Federal Audit Court, of one of the Superior Courts, or of the Supreme Federal Court itself;
r) lawsuits against the National Council of Justice and against the National Council of the Public Prosecution;
II – to judge on ordinary appeal:
a) habeas corpus, writs of mandamus, habeas data and writs of injunction decided in a sole instance by the Superior Courts, in the event of a denial;
b) political crimes;
III – to judge, on extraordinary appeal, cases decided in a sole or last instance, when the decision appealed:
a) is contrary to a provision of this Constitution;
b) declares a treaty or a federal law unconstitutional;
c) considers valid a law or act of a local government contested in the light of this Constitution;
d) considers valid a local law challenged in the light of a federal law.
Paragraph 1. A claim of non-compliance with a fundamental precept deriving from this Constitution shall be examined by the Supreme Federal Court, under the terms of the law.
… (Art. 102) - Portuguese
Compete ao Supremo Tribunal Federal, precipuamente, a guarda da Constituição, cabendo-lhe:
I - processar e julgar, originariamente:
a) a ação direta de inconstitucionalidade de lei ou ato normativo federal ou estadual e a ação declaratória de constitucionalidade de lei ou ato normativo federal;
b) nas infrações penais comuns, o Presidente da República, o Vice-Presidente, os membros do Congresso Nacional, seus próprios Ministros e o Procurador-Geral da República;
c) nas infrações penais comuns e nos crimes de responsabilidade, os Ministros de Estado e os Comandantes da Marinha, do Exército e da Aeronáutica, ressalvado o disposto no art. 52, I, os membros dos Tribunais Superiores, os do Tribunal de Contas da União e os chefes de missão diplomática de caráter permanente;
d) o habeas corpus, sendo paciente qualquer das pessoas referidas nas alíneas anteriores; o mandado de segurança e o habeas data contra atos do Presidente da República, das Mesas da Câmara dos Deputados e do Senado Federal, do Tribunal de Contas da União, do Procurador-Geral da República e do próprio Supremo Tribunal Federal;
e) o litígio entre Estado estrangeiro ou organismo internacional e a União, o Estado, o Distrito Federal ou o Território;
f) as causas e os conflitos entre a União e os Estados, a União e o Distrito Federal, ou entre uns e outros, inclusive as respectivas entidades da administração indireta;
g) a extradição solicitada por Estado estrangeiro;
h) (Revogado pela Emenda Constitucional nº 45, de 2004)
i) o habeas corpus, quando o coator for Tribunal Superior ou quando o coator ou o paciente for autoridade ou funcionário cujos atos estejam sujeitos diretamente à jurisdição do Supremo Tribunal Federal, ou se trate de crime sujeito à mesma jurisdição em uma única instância;
j) a revisão criminal e a ação rescisória de seus julgados;
l) a reclamação para a preservação de sua competência e garantia da autoridade de suas decisões;
m) a execução de sentença nas causas de sua competência originária, facultada a delegação de atribuições para a prática de atos processuais;
n) a ação em que todos os membros da magistratura sejam direta ou indiretamente interessados, e aquela em que mais da metade dos membros do tribunal de origem estejam impedidos ou sejam direta ou indiretamente interessados;
o) os conflitos de competência entre o Superior Tribunal de Justiça e quaisquer tribunais, entre Tribunais Superiores, ou entre estes e qualquer outro tribunal;
p) o pedido de medida cautelar das ações diretas de inconstitucionalidade;
q) o mandado de injunção, quando a elaboração da norma regulamentadora for atribuição do Presidente da República, do Congresso Nacional, da Câmara dos Deputados, do Senado Federal, das Mesas de uma dessas Casas Legislativas, do Tribunal de Contas da União, de um dos Tribunais Superiores, ou do próprio Supremo Tribunal Federal;
r) as ações contra o Conselho Nacional de Justiça e contra o Conselho Nacional do Ministério Público;
II - julgar, em recurso ordinário:
a) o habeas corpus, o mandado de segurança, o habeas data e o mandado de injunção decididos em única instância pelos Tribunais Superiores, se denegatória a decisão;
b) o crime político;
III - julgar, mediante recurso extraordinário, as causas decididas em única ou última instância, quando a decisão recorrida:
a) contrariar dispositivo desta Constituição;
b) declarar a inconstitucionalidade de tratado ou lei federal;
c) julgar válida lei ou ato de governo local contestado em face desta Constituição.
d) julgar válida lei local contestada em face de lei federal.
§ 1.º A argüição de descumprimento de preceito fundamental, decorrente desta Constituição, será apreciada pelo Supremo Tribunal Federal, na forma da lei.
… (Art. 102)
Jurisdiction and Access
- English(1) A statute shall specify who shall be entitled to submit a petition instituting a proceeding before the Constitutional Court, and under what conditions, and shall lay down other rules for proceedings before the Constitutional Court.
… (1993 Constitution, Art. 88) - Czech(1) Zákon stanoví, kdo a za jakých podmínek je oprávněn podat návrh na zahájení řízení a další pravidla o řízení před Ústavním soudem.
… (Ústava 1993, Čl. 88)
Jurisdiction and Access
- English
The Constitutional Council is referred to [a matter] by:
• the President of Faso;
• the Prime Minister;
• the President of the National Assembly;
• one-tenth (1/10) at least of the members of the National Assembly.
In addition, any citizen may refer [a matter] to the Constitutional Council concerning the constitutionality of the laws, either directly, or through the procedure of the pleadings [exception] of unconstitutionality invoked in a matter [affaire] which concerns them before a jurisdiction. This must postpone [the matter] until the decision of the Constitutional Council which must intervene within a maximum period of time of thirty days counting from its referral [to the matter].
The Constitutional Council can refer itself to any questions relative to its competence, if it judges it necessary. (Art. 157) - French
Le Conseil constitutionnel est saisi par :
• le Président du Faso;
• le Premier ministre;
• le Président de l'Assemblée nationale;
• un dixième (1/10) au moins des membres de chaque chambre du Parlement.
En outre, tout citoyen peut saisir le Conseil constitutionnel sur la constitutionnalité des lois, soit directement, soit par la procédure de l’exception d’inconstitutionnalité invoquée dans une affaire qui le concerne devant une juridiction. Celle-ci doit surseoir jusqu’à la décision du Conseil constitutionnel qui doit intervenir dans un délai maximum de trente jours à compter de sa saisine.
Le Conseil constitutionnel peut se saisir de toutes questions relevant de sa compétence s’il le juge nécessaire. (Art. 157)
Jurisdiction and Access
- English…
(2) Without derogating from the generality of subsection (1) the High Court has jurisdiction -
(a) to enforce the fundamental human rights and freedoms guaranteed by this Constitution; and
(b) to hear and determine any matter of a constitutional nature.
… (Sec. 151)
Jurisdiction and Access
- EnglishThe Constitutional Court decides obligatorily on:
– the treaties and international agreements before their entry into force, concerning their conformity with the Constitution, after the adoption by the Parliament of the law of authorization;
– the constitutionality of the organic laws and of the laws before their promulgation, as well as of the ordinances after their publication;
– the regulations of the National Assembly and of the Senate, the regulations of procedure of the Constitutional Court and the regulations of the Economic, Social and environmental Council, before their implementation, concerning their conformity with the Constitution;
– the regulations of the independent administrative authorities determined by the law, before their implementation, concerning their conformity with the Constitution;
– the conflicts of attribution between the institutions of the State;
– the regularity of the presidential [and] parliamentary elections, and of the operations of the referendum of which it proclaims the results.
The Constitutional Court is referred to [the matter] in case of dispute concerning the validity of an election, by any elector, any candidate, any political party or delegate of the Government under the conditions provided for by the organic law on the Constitutional Court. (Art. 84) - FrenchLa Cour Constitutionnelle statue obligatoirement sur :
-les traités et accords internationaux avant leur entrée en vigueur, quant à leur conformité à la Constitution, après adoption par le Parlement de la loi d'autorisation ;
-la constitutionnalité des lois organiques et des lois avant leur promulgation ainsi que des ordonnances après leur publication ;
-les règlements de l'Assemblée Nationale et du Sénat, le règlement de procédure de la Cour Constitutionnelle et le règlement du Conseil Economique, Social et Environnemental, avant leur mise en application, quant à leur conformité à la Constitution ;
-les règlements des autorités administratives indépendantes déterminées par la loi, avant leur mise en application, quant à leur conformité à la Constitution ;
-les conflits d'attribution entre les institutions de l'Etat ;
-la régularité des élections présidentielles, parlementaires et des opérations de référendum dont elle proclame les résultats.
La Cour Constitutionnelle est saisie, en cas de contestation sur la validité d'une élection, par tout électeur, tout candidat, tout parti politique ou délégué du Gouvernement dans les conditions prévues par la loi organique sur la Cour Constitutionnelle. (Art. 84)
Jurisdiction and Access
- EnglishThe Constitutional Court is the supreme body for controlling, constitutionally interpreting and administering justice in this matter. It exercises national jurisdiction and its seat is in the city of Quito.
The decisions related to the attributions provided for in the Constitution shall be adopted by the plenary of the Court. (Art. 429) - SpanishLa Corte Constitucional es el máximo órgano de control, interpretación constitucional y de administración de justicia en esta materia. Ejerce jurisdicción nacional y su sede es la ciudad de Quito.
Las decisiones relacionadas con las atribuciones previstas en la Constitución serán adoptadas por el pleno de la Corte. (Art. 429)