Constitutional Court 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.
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Some of the key events about Constitutional Court of Spain

  • 1980
    Established as Spain's highest constitutional authority to interpret the Constitution
  • 1981
    Ruled on the constitutionality of the law regulating the autonomy process
  • 1981
    Ruled against legalizing divorce, delaying its introduction in Spain
  • 1983
    Declared unconstitutional parts of a law on abortion, leading to its reform
  • 1985
    Upheld restrictions on abortion rights, limiting access for many women
  • 1986
    Upheld the constitutionality of Spain's membership in the European Economic Community
  • 1991
    Ruled in favor of extending social security benefits to unmarried couples
  • 1994
    Declared the unconstitutionality of certain aspects of the 1988 General Telecommunications Law
  • 1994
    Declared unconstitutional parts of a law aimed at protecting the Basque language
  • 2005
    Upheld the constitutionality of same-sex marriage in Spain
  • 2005
    Struck down key provisions of Catalonia's autonomy statute
  • 2010
    Issued a landmark ruling on the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia
  • 2010
    Ruled against expanded autonomy for Catalonia, fueling separatist sentiment
  • 2014
    Blocked Catalonia's non-binding independence referendum
  • 2015
    Suspended the Catalan parliament's independence declaration, upholding national unity
  • 2015
    Suspended Catalonia's declaration of sovereignty
  • 2017
    Declared Catalonia's independence referendum unconstitutional
  • 2019
    Ruled that the exhumation of Francisco Franco's remains was constitutional
  • 2019
    Upheld lengthy prison sentences for Catalan independence leaders
  • 2021
    Ruled that Spain's first COVID-19 lockdown was unconstitutional

Disclaimer: This material is written based on information taken from open sources, including Wikipedia, news media, podcasts, and other public sources.

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