In brief
The 2021 amendments to the Amparo Law, published in the Official Federal Gazette on 7 June 2021, are regarding the creation of new entities for the federal judicial power and a new jurisprudence system that overly empowers the Supreme Court of Justice.
_______________________________
The new jurisprudence system overly empowers the Supreme Court of Justice
- In the new jurisprudence system, the Supreme Court’s resolutions will be mandatory immediately, instead of the five consistent judgments that were previously required to create jurisprudence.
- All the Supreme Court resolutions issues after 7 June 2021 must constitute jurisprudence by obligatory precedent.
The new entities of the federal judicial power and the new jurisprudence system
The latest amendments to the Amparo Law were published in the Official Federal Gazette on 7 June 2021. Among the main aspects is the creation of new entities for the federal judicial power: (i) the regional plenaries and (ii) the collegiate appeal tribunals. The regional plenaries replace the circuit plenaries and have the main responsibility of resolving contradictions on precedents issued by the judicial circuits that are part of their territory. This helps to have the same jurisdictional criteria in different circuits of the same region.
The collegiate appeal tribunals replace the unitary circuit courts, which were made up of only one judge. These new tribunals will be made up of three magistrates instead of one, with the purpose of guaranteeing better quality and certainty in the resolutions. Among its main duties is to settle the second instance of the indirect Amparo proceeding (recurso de revisión), as well as the appeals in federal civil, commercial, administrative and criminal proceedings.
Likewise, it is important to consider the amendments to the Amparo Law regarding the jurisprudence system explained below:
| BEFORE THE AMENDMENTS | AFTER THE AMENDMENTS |
| The jurisprudence can be created by the reiteration of precedents, a contradiction of criteria and substitution. | The jurisprudence can be created by obligatory precedent, the reiteration of precedents and contradiction of criteria. |
| Reiteration of precedents The Supreme Court of Justice (“Supreme Court”) and the collegiate circuit tribunals can create jurisprudence by the reiteration of precedents. | Reiteration of precedents Only applies to the circuit collegiate tribunals. Obligatory precedent When the decisions of the Supreme Court are taken by eight votes or more, all their resolutions are considered obligatory precedents for all Mexican courts. In the case of resolutions made by one of the Supreme Court plenaries, it will only require fourth votes to be mandatory. |
| Contradiction of criteria The jurisprudence by contradiction of criteria can be created by the Supreme Court and the circuit plenaries. | Contradiction of criteria The jurisprudence by contradiction of criteria can be created by the Supreme Court and the regional plenaries. |
| Precedent substitution The jurisprudence can be substituted by another judicial criteria, upon a previous request of a circuit collegiate tribunal and of a plenary or minister of the Supreme Court to the Supreme Court. | Precedent substitution The national courts have the option to not follow the jurisprudence under sufficient arguments to justify the modification of the criteria. |
Regarding the new jurisprudence system, it is important to point out that all the Supreme Court’s resolutions will be mandatory immediately, instead of the five consistent judgments that were previously required to create jurisprudence. Additionally, the collegiate circuit tribunals and the plenaries or ministers of the Supreme Court will not be able to request the jurisprudence creation by substitution of criteria. This overly empowers the Supreme Court because all Mexican judges can only discontinue the application of the Supreme Court resolutions when the Supreme Court itself revokes its own jurisprudence.
The creation of the regional plenaries and the collegiate tribunals of appeals must be gradual and in a staggered manner, within an 18-month period from publication of the amendment in the Federal Official Gazette. This term expires in December 2022.
Regarding the new jurisprudence system, it entered into force following the publication of the amendment in the Federal Official Gazette, this means that all the Supreme Court resolutions issued after 7 June 2021 must constitute jurisprudence by obligatory precedent.
