Constitutional Court (Portugal)

Constitutional Court
Tribunal Constitucional
Constitutional Court logo
Ratton Palace in Bairro Alto, Lisbon, seat of the Constitutional Court
Interactive map of Constitutional Court
38°42′50.382″N 9°8′52.1124″W
Established	November 3, 1982 (1982-11-03)
Location	Ratton Palace, Rua do Século 111, Lisbon, Portugal
Coordinates	38°42′50.382″N 9°8′52.1124″W
Composition method	10 justices elected by the parliament, 3 justices elected by co-option
Authorised by	Constitution of Portugal
Appeals to	None
Judge term length	9 years
Number of positions	13
Website	TC
President of the Constitutional Court
Currently	João Carlos Loureiro
Since	April 26, 2023 (2023-04-26)

The Constitutional Court (Portuguese: Tribunal Constitucional, pronounced [tɾiβuˈnal kõʃtitusiuˈnal]) is the supreme constitutional court of Portugal. It is defined by the Portuguese Constitution as part of the judicial branch of the Portuguese political organization. Unlike the rest of the country's courts, the Constitutional Court has important characteristics, such as a special composition, and unique competences. The main task of the court is to review the constitutionality of the newly approved laws, but it also has important powers related to the president of the republic, the political parties, and referendums.

The Portuguese Constitution defines the Constitutional Court as a completely independent organ that operates independently from the other branches of government, such as the executive or the legislative. The justices of the Constitutional Court are independent and cannot be impeached. The decisions of the court are above the decisions of any other authority.

The court convenes in Lisbon, in the Ratton Palace located in Bairro Alto.

Organization

Created in 1982, following a a constitutional review, the court is composed by thirteen justices, ten of whom are elected by the Assembly of the Republic, the main legislative branch of the country, and they must be elected by two-thirds majority of the members of the Assembly. The remaining three are elected by the already elected justices. Of the thirteen justices, six must be chosen among the general court's judges, and the remainder must have at least a degree in law. The justices serve a nine-year mandate and cannot be re-elected.

The Constitutional Court elects its own president and vice-president and approves its own rules, schedule and budget.

The president of the Constitutional Court (together with the president of the Supreme Court) is the fourth person in the Portuguese state hierarchy (after the president of the republic, the president of the Assembly of the Republic, and the prime minister, in that order) and has several competences, such as conducting the relations between the court and the other authorities, receiving the candidatures for president of the republic and presiding the court's sessions. The current president (as of 2026) is João Carlos Loureiro.

Competences

The Constitutional Court has several competences, defined in the Constitution, such as:

• Assure that the Constitution and regional autonomies are respected;
• Review and assure the constitutionality of the laws;
• Declare the president's death or inability to carry out his tasks;
• Manage the electoral processes;
• Assure that political parties fulfil the legal requirements to exist;
• Prohibit and dissolve fascist parties and organizations;
• Assure the legality of the national and local referendums.

Judges

Current composition of the Court.

No.	Judge	Party designation		Tenure		Alma mater	Career path
				Start	End
1	Judge President João Carlos Loureiro		Co-opted Social Democratic	25 April 2023	2032	University of Coimbra	Professor at University of Coimbra
2	Deputy Judge President Rui Guerra da Fonseca		Co-opted Socialist	25 April 2023	2032	University of Lisbon	Professor at University of Lisbon
3	Judge Mariana Canotilho		Communist	2 April 2019	2028	University of Coimbra	Legal Advisor at the Constitutional Court
4	Judge Afonso Patrão		Social Democratic	12 October 2021	2030	University of Coimbra	Legal Advisor at the Constitutional Court
5	Judge José Ascensão Ramos		Socialist	12 October 2021	2030	University of Coimbra	Presiding Judge of the Leiria District Court
6	Judge José Eduardo Figueiredo Dias		Social Democratic	12 October 2021	2030	University of Coimbra	President of the Entity for Political Accounts and Financing
7	Judge Maria Benedita Urbano		Social Democratic	12 October 2021	2030	University of Coimbra	Advisor to the Supreme Administrative Court
8	Judge Carlos Carvalho		Co-opted Independent	25 April 2023	2032	University of Lisbon	Advisor to the Supreme Administrative Court
9	Judge Dora Lucas Neto		Socialist	11 December 2023	2032	University of Lisbon	Advisor to the Supreme Administrative Court
10	Judge Joaquim Cardoso da Costa		Social Democratic	15 June 2026	2035	University of Coimbra	Director of the State Legal Center
11	Judge Gabriela Cunha Rodrigues		Socialist	15 June 2026	2035	University of Lisbon	Chief of Staff to the President of the Supreme Court of Justice
12	Judge Maria Paula Ribeiro Faria		Social Democratic	15 June 2026	2035	University of Coimbra	Professor at Porto's Catholic University
13	Judge Luís Filipe Brites Lameiras		Chega	15 June 2026	2035	University of Lisbon	Judge of Lisbon's Court of Appeal

See also

• Judiciary of Portugal
  • Portuguese Supreme Court of Justice
  • Portuguese Court of Auditors
  • Portuguese Supreme Administrative Court
• Politics of Portugal
• Constitution of Portugal

External links

• Official website