Established 1996 Location Kiev | Country Ukraine Authorized by | |
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Composition method Presidential, Parliamentary and Congress of Judges nomination Judge term length 9 years, obliged to resign at age 65 | ||
The Constitutional Court of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Конституційний Суд України) is the sole body of constitutional jurisdiction in Ukraine. The Constitutional Court of Ukraine interprets the Constitution of Ukraine and decides whether laws and other legal acts are constitutional.
Contents
- Mission and authority
- Structure
- List of judges
- Ukrainian Parliamentary Election 2007
- Famous and notorious rulings
- Court Contacts
- References
The Court initiated its activity on October 18, 1996. The first Court ruling was made on May 13, 1997.
On urgent matters the Constitutional Court rules within weeks but on matters deemed less urgent it can take months or even longer.
There have been political accusations of attempts to bribe and blackmail Constitutional Court judges in order to get a favourable ruling.
Mission and authority
In 2016 access to the Constitutional Court was significantly broadened. Since then all individuals and companies where there are grounds to claim that a final court judgment contradicts the Constitution can file a complaint at the court. A complaint may only be filed after all other remedies have been exhausted in the regular Ukrainian courts.
The amended Constitution of Ukraine now provides for access to the Constitutional Court of Ukraine to all individuals and companies where there are grounds to claim that a final court judgment contradicts the Constitution. A complaint may only be filed after all other remedies have been exhausted in the regular Ukrainian courts.
The authority of the Constitutional Court is derived from Ukraine's Constitution - Chapter XII
The Court:
The Court's rulings are mandatory for execution in Ukraine, are final and cannot be appealed. Laws and other legal acts, or their separate provisions, that are deemed unconstitutional, lose legal force.
Structure
The Court is composed of 18 judges, appointed in equal shares by the President, the parliament, and the Congress of Judges.
A judge must be a citizen of Ukraine and must have:
Judges are appointed for 9 years without the right of reappointment; moreover each judge is obligated to retire at the age of 65 if this age comes before the end of the 9-year period. The President and parliament are required to fill a vacant position within one month and the Congress of judges has three months to do so. But the appointment comes into effect only after oath of the new judge in the parliament; therefore sometimes it is a problem to become a judge of the Constitutional Court if many members of parliament do not want this (for example, they can physically disturb to hold a meeting of the parliament, that is usual in Ukraine).
The Chairman of the Court is elected by secret ballot for a single three-year term from and by the members of the Court. The current Chairman, Anatoliy Holovin.
List of judges
Dismissed in 2014
Ukrainian Parliamentary Election, 2007
On April 19 the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe passed a resolution in consideration of a report titled Functioning of democratic institutions in Ukraine. (Items 13 and 14) stated:
The associated explanatory report under the sub-heading of Pressure on the courts expressed concern that
In emphasis the report (item 68) stated
On April 30, on the eve of the Constitutional Court's ruling on the legality of the president's decree dismissing Ukraine's parliament, President Yushchenko, in defiance of the PACE resolution of April 19 intervened in the operation of Ukraine's Constitutional Court by summarily dismissing two Constitutional Court Judges, Syuzanna Stanik and Valeriy Pshenychnyy, for allegations of "oath treason." His move was later overturned by the Constitutional Court and the judges were returned by a temporary restraining order issued by the court.
On May 16,Viktor Yushchenko, for a second time, issued another decree dismissing the two Constitutional Court Judges Syuzanna Stanik and Valeriy Pshenychnyy.
On May 17, the Constitutional Court Chairman Ivan Dombrovskyy resigns and is replaced by Valeriy Pshenychnyy.
On May 23, The Constitutional Court of Ukraine acted to prevent the president's undue influence on the court system. The court's ruling was made after Viktor Yushchenko unduly sought to influence the court by illegally firing two Constitutional Court judges Valeriy Pshenychnyy and Syuzanna Stanik for allegations of "oath treason.".
On July 20 Susanna Stanik won an appeal against the President in the Shevchenko district court of Kyiv. The Court ruled the President's actions illegal and reinstated Ms Stanik's entitlement as a member of Ukraine's Constitutional Court. According to the ruling, the President is obliged to cancel his decree on discharge of Mrs. Stanik.." The other two judges who were also illegally dismissed had previously tendered their resignations and as such were not subject to the courts order.
Following the president's intervention the Constitutional Court still has not ruled on the question of legality of the president's actions.
Stepan Havrsh, the President's appointee to the Constitutional Court, in prejudgment of the courts decision and without authorization from the Court itself, commented in an interview published on July 24
Olexander Lavrynovych, Ukrainian Minister for Justice, in an interview published on August 3 is quoted as saying
Famous and notorious rulings
Court Contacts
Citizens of Ukraine, noncitizens, people without citizenship and legal entities can only ask the Court for interpretation of the Constitution and laws of Ukraine. A written request can be submitted in person or by mail. Court's address is 01033, Ukraine, Kiev, vyl. Zhylyanska, 14. Contact phone is (+380-44)238-1317.