Bill to speed up renewals of the Constitutional Court

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The bill would remove the check the Constitutional Court itself performed on people already appointed as judges, because the appointing body already verifies those requirements.
2. It would allow the Government or the General Council of the Judiciary to renew their two judges separately if the other body has not made its proposal three months after the scheduled date.
3. It would reaffirm that the bodies appointing judges must check they meet the constitutional requirements, and would add failing to meet them as a ground for removal from office.
4. Two transitional rules would clarify what happens with renewals already underway: pending appointments could go ahead without that verification, and the President of the General Council of the Judiciary would have to start the procedure within five working days if the deadline has already passed.

Who it affects

• The Constitutional Court (Tribunal Constitucional), which would lose the task of verifying the requirements of already appointed judges and could renew blocked seats.: Changes its appointment and removal procedures.
• The Government and the General Council of the Judiciary (Consejo General del Poder Judicial), which could appoint separately if the other is more than three months late.: New duty to check requirements and possible separate appointments.
• Political parties and parliamentary groups in the Congress of Deputies and the Senate, which the bill seeks to stop from blocking renewals.: Less room to delay appointments.
• Appointed judges, who could be removed if they do not meet the constitutional requirements.: New ground for removal.

Words worth knowing

Tribunal Constitucional

The body that guarantees that laws and acts of public authorities comply with the Spanish Constitution. It is not part of any of the three branches of the State.

Ley Orgánica

Organic law: a type of law reserved for major matters, such as how the Constitutional Court works. It needs a reinforced majority in the Congress to pass.

Consejo General del Poder Judicial

General Council of the Judiciary: the governing body of Spanish judges and courts. Half of its members are chosen by the Congress and half by the Senate.

Voto particular

Dissenting opinion: a written opinion by a judge who disagrees with the majority ruling.

Proposición de ley

A bill introduced by parliamentary groups to create or change a law. It is not an approved law until the full parliamentary process ends.

It summarizes the text as it was introduced. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries