Federal Constitutional Court of Delkora
| Federal Constitutional Court of Delkora | |
|---|---|
| Established | 1833 |
| Location | Norenstal, Delkora |
| Composition method | Nomination by the federal Cabinet subject to approval from the Federal Parliament |
| Authorized by | Constitution of Delkora |
| Judge term length | Mandatory retirement at 70 years of age |
| Number of positions | 12 |
| Website | www |
| President | |
| Currently | Arya Raelenthur |
| Since | 24 April 2007 |
The Federal Constitutional Court of Delkora (Delkoran: Føderal Forfatningsdomstol) is the highest court in the Kingdom of Delkora, responsible for interpreting the Delkoran Constitution and ensuring that laws are in compliance with it.
Composition
The Court is composed of 12 justices who are nominated by the Cabinet and require the approval of a 2/3 majority of both members of the Federal Parliament. To be eligible to sit on the Court, a candidate must be at least 30 years old, have at least 10 years of legal experience, possess a law degree from an accredited university, and be currently licensed to practice law. Once sworn in, justices can only be removed from office for criminal convictions, professional misconduct, and other narrowly defined ethical violations. An effort to remove a justice requires a 2/3 majority of both chambers of Parliament.
Organization and function
The Federal Constitutional Court is presided over by a president and vice president elected from its ranks. The president presides over the Court's deliberations and oversees aspects of its administration such as budgetary and personnel matters, but otherwise possesses no special powers. In the event of the president being incapacitated or recusing themselves from a case, the vice president performs these duties.
The Court sets its own caseload; at least 4 justices must vote to hear a case in order for it to proceed. In practice, most cases brought before the court for consideration are not heard, most often because justices determine that the constitutional issue at question has already been resolved or that the plaintiff does not have a judiciable case.
It meets for three sessions throughout the year, the first being from 2 January to 2 March, the second being from 2 May to 2 July, and the third going from 2 September to 2 November. Under the Delkoran Constitution, the monarch, on the advice of the Cabinet, can call the Court into special session to expedite consideration of a particularly important case brought before it during a recess.
Role
The Court has the power to exercise judicial review of all primary and secondary legislation at the federal, state, and local levels in Delkora to ensure its compliance with the Delkoran Constitution. Pursuant to this power, it can declare any act of government unconstitutional. Once declared unconstitutional, a regulation or piece of legislation immediately ceases to have legal force.
The Court's scope is limited to federal constitutional questions; questions of federal ordinary and administrative law are handled by separate courts. Similarly, questions involving state law and constitutional matters are under the jurisdiction of a separate system of state courts.
Matters subject to the Court's jurisdiction fall into three categories:
- Violations of constitutional rights: The most common cases brought before the Court are accusations on the part of individuals or organizations that an act of government has violated a person's constitutional rights.
- Vertical division of power: Cases involving disputes over whether a particular area is a federal or state competency.
- Horizontal division of power: Cases involving disputes over which body of the federal government has authority in a particular area.
- Abstract review: Any person can request that the Court provide an advisory opinion on a particular matter to ascertain its constitutionality. The most common cases falling under this category are requests from the government or opposition to rule on the constitutionality of proposed legislation or regulations.