Supreme Court of Puerto Rico - Structure and Powers

Structure and Powers

The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico was established by the Foraker Act in 1900 and maintained in the 1952 Constitution of Puerto Rico. It is the only appellate court required by the Constitution. All other courts are created by the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico. However, since Puerto Rico is under United States sovereignty, there is also a Federal District Court for the island.

The justices (currently nine) are appointed by the Governor of Puerto Rico and confirmed by majority vote by the Senate. One of these nine justices serves as Chief Justice; the remaining members are designated Associate Justices. Unlike the Supreme Court of the United States, the justices of the Puerto Rico Supreme Court do not serve for life, as the Puerto Rico Constitution requires that all judges must retire upon reaching age 70.

Although the Constitution of Puerto Rico provides for the Court to be composed of five justices, it also contains a provision that the number may be altered, though only by petition of the Court itself. This provision has been used four times in Court history. Immediately after the Constitution's ratification, the Court asked for two additional judges. During the early 1960s, the Court once again petitioned for the addition of two more judges, arguing that there was a case backlog on its docket. Subsequently, during the 1970s the Court asked for its number to be reduced back to seven members, arguing that the backlog had been attended to. Finally, in 2010 a 4–3 majority of the justices petitioned the Legislative Assembly to once again increase the Court's membership to 9. This decision has generated controversy since it is the first time that such a request has been done without unanimity from the justices.

The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico is defined by the Constitution and the laws of Puerto Rico. In general, the jurisdictional structure parallels that of the state Supreme Courts in the continental United States. The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico has concurrent jurisdiction with federal courts to interpret federal laws, unless the Supremacy Clause requires otherwise. Judgments that stand on federal law grounds may be reviewed by the United States Supreme Court, unless an adequate and independent ground for the decision based in Puerto Rico commonwealth law is also present. The Court has the power of judicial review and its decision are considered binding precedent within the jurisdiction of Puerto Rico. The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico also regulates the practice of law in Puerto Rico.

The term of the Puerto Rico Supreme Court begins on the first Monday of October and ends on the last week of June of the following year. However, during the recess months of July through September, an alternating panel of three justices are allowed to hear cases and their decisions are considered binding precedent. However, in order for any law passed by the Legislative Assembly to be declared unconstitutional, it requires the votes of a majority of the total membership of the Court, therefore, a three-justice panel may not hear constitutional challenges to laws passed by the Legislature.

The justices decide whether or not to hear oral arguments for the case. If the case is controversial or carries high public interest, an oral argument may be scheduled, although oral arguments were rare under Chief Justice Hernández Denton. When oral argument occurs, each side has twenty-five minutes to state its respective claims and five minutes for rebuttal. After the sides have ended their argument, each justice has ten minutes (in order of seniority) to ask questions to each side. Justices may decide to yield the balance of their time to one of their colleagues.

Because several Federal judges have voluntarily withdrawn from the Puerto Rico Bar Association and was converted by statute into a voluntary membership organization, the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico maintains the official bar records of Puerto Rico licensed attorneys.