President of the Constitutional Court (Spain)
The President of the Constitutional Court (Spanish: Presidente del Tribunal Constitucional) of Spain is the head of the Constitutional Court, the highest body with the power to determine the constitutionality of acts of the Spanish Government and regional governments. It is defined in Part IX (i.e. sections 159 through 165) of the Constitution of Spain, and further governed by Organic Laws 2/1979 (a.k.a. Law of the Constitutional Court of October 3, 1979),[3] 8/1984, 4/1985, 6/1988, 7/1999 and 1/2000.[4] The court is the "supreme interpreter"[4] of the Constitution, but since the court is not a part of the Spanish Judiciary,[4] the Supreme Court is the highest court for all judicial matters.[5]
| President of the Constitutional Court | |
|---|---|
.svg.png) Coat of Arms of Spain | |
| Abbreviation | PTC |
| Member of | Constitutional Court |
| Seat | Constitutional Court Headquarters, Madrid, |
| Nominator | Plenary Court |
| Appointer | King of Spain |
| Term length | 3 years, 2 terms limit |
| Constituting instrument | Constitution of 1978 |
| Formation | 1979 |
| First holder | Manuel García Pelayo [1] |
| Deputy | Vice President of the Constitutional Court |
| Salary | €152,735 annually[2] |
| Website | tribunalconstitucional.es |
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Functions
The President of the Constitutional Court, in accordance with the Constitutional Court Act of 1979:[6]
- It exercises the representation of the Court.
- Summons and chairs the Plenary Court and convenes the court's chambers
- Chairs the First Chamber
- It adopts the necessary measures for the functioning of the Court, Chambers and Sections.
- It communicates the vacancies of the courts justices to the Cortes, the Government or to the General Council of the Judiciary.
- Appoints the counsels, clerks, calls the competitive examinations and contests to cover the positions of civil servants and positions hired staff.
- It exercises administrative powers over the staff of the Court.
List of Presidents of the Constitutional Court
- Manuel García Pelayo (1980–1986)
- Francisco Tomás y Valiente (1986–1992)
- Miguel Rodríguez-Piñero Bravo-Ferrer (1992–1995)
- Álvaro Rodríguez Bereijo (1995–1998)
- Pedro Cruz Villalón (1998–2001)
- Manuel Jiménez de Parga (2001–2004)
- María Emilia Casas Baamonde (2004–2011).
- Pascual Sala Sánchez (2011–2013).
- Francisco Pérez de los Cobos Orihuel (2013–2017).
- Juan José González Rivas (2017-present).
Election
The Plenary Court elects from its members, by secret ballot, its President for a period of three years and proposes its appointment to the King. For its election is required to reach in the first ballot the absolute majority; if this majority is not reached, it will be elected in the second ballot that obtains the greatest number of votes; In the event of a tie, a final vote shall be taken and if it is repeated, the oldest at work candidate shall be proposed for the office of President and, in the case of equal seniority, the oldest candidate bye age. If the three-year term for which he was appointed did not coincide with the renewal of the Constitutional Court, that term of office shall be extended to end at the time the renewal occurs and the new judges take office.[6]
Oath
The President and other Judges of the Constitutional Court shall, upon assuming office before the King, give the following oath or promise:[6]
«I swear (or promise) to faithfully obey and enforce at all times the Spanish Constitution, with loyalty to the Crown and to fulfill my duties as Constitutional Magistrate.»
Spanish: «Juro (o prometo) guardar y hacer guardar fielmente y en todo tiempo la Constitución española, con lealtad a la Corona y cumplir mis deberes como Magistrado Constitucional.»
References
- Real Decreto 1322/1980, de 4 de julio, por el que se nombra Presidente del Tribunal Constitucional a don Manuel García-Pelayo y Alonso
- EFE (2019-01-14). "Pedro Sánchez percibirá un salario de 82.978 euros". El País (in Spanish). ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 2019-02-09.
- Newton, Michael T.; Peter J. Donaghy (1997). Institutions of modern Spain : a political and economic guide. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-57348-3.
- Olga Cabrero. "A Guide to the Spanish Legal System". Law Library Resource Xchange, LLC. Archived from the original on 2006-12-14. Cite journal requires
|journal=(help) - § 123, clause 1, Spanish Constitution of 1978
- Ley Orgánica 2/1979, de 3 de octubre, del Tribunal Constitucional.