Competencies and objectives

Provisional information. Pending approval by the Department Council.

 

Course context for academic year 2026-27

The course Constitutional Justice and Constitutional Interpretation (Code 19038) focuses on the models of Constitutional Justice and, in particular, the role of constitutional courts as ad hoc tribunals in the judicial review of constitutionality (the concentrated model), within which the Spanish Constitutional Court operates. It analyzes compliance with, protection of, and application of constitutional legal norms, as well as the mechanisms of constitutional control and protection, their characteristics, and modalities. A specific section is dedicated to the appointment and composition of the justices of the Constitutional Court and their legal status.

From the perspective of constitutional supremacy and its normative character, to which all branches of government must adhere, this discipline provides students with specialized legal-constitutional training on the effectiveness of constitutional precepts through the judicial review of the constitutionality of state powers. This includes: examination or review of the constitutionality of provisions and acts with the force of law (amparo of unconstitutionality, among others); resolution of conflicts between constitutional powers and bodies of the State (conflict of powers); resolution of challenges under Article 161.2 of the Spanish Constitution and other conflicts (jurisdictional and in defense of local autonomy); constitutional protection of rights and freedoms (amparo appeal), etc.

In addition to the above, the course delves into the difference between interpretation of the Constitution and interpretation in accordance with the Constitution, the criteria for constitutional interpretation, the trihedral nature and legal character of the judgments of the Constitutional Court, and their effects as abstract review of constitutionality, as well as other rulings of the highest constitutional interpreter. Finally, the purpose, meaning, and most debated legal aspects surrounding the 2015 incorporation of the procedure for enforcing Constitutional Court rulings are examined.

The material covered in this course contributes to the professional profile of the Bachelor of Laws degree and to the development of its specific and general competencies, allowing for a deeper understanding of the role of the Constitutional Court as guarantor of the social and democratic rule of law and the balance of powers.

The course's place within the curriculum is within the Public Law track, and it is connected to the other legal knowledge areas of the curriculum.

 

 

Learning outcomes / Course competencies (verified by ANECA in official undergraduate and Master’s degrees) for academic year 2026-27

General Competences (CG)

  • CG1 : Capacity for oral and written communication.
  • CG4 : Capacity for analysis and synthesis.
  • CG5 : Develop the capacity for organisation and planning.
  • CG7 : Develop critical and self-critical thought.
  • CG9 : Capacity for self-learning and adapting to new situations.

 

Specific Competences (CE)

  • CE1 : Awareness of the importance of Law as a system for regulating social relationships.
  • CE11 : Capacity for negotiation and conciliation.
  • CE14 : Understanding of the main public and private institutions in their genesis and as a whole.
  • CE15 : Understand the different ways laws are created through historical evolution and current reality.
  • CE17 : Capacity to apply general legal principles and regulations to factual suppositions.
  • CE2 : Perceive the unitary nature of the legal code and the interdisciplinary vision required for legal problems.
  • CE4 : Capacity to handle legal sources (legal, jurisprudential and doctrinal).
  • CE6 : Capacity to read and interpret legal texts.
  • CE7 : Capacity to write legal documents.
  • CE9 : Adquisición de una conciencia crítica en el análisis del ordenamiento jurídico y desarrollo de la dialéctica jurídica.

 

 

 

Learning outcomes (Training objectives)

No data

 

 

Specific objectives stated by the academic staff for academic year 2026-27

To know and understand the meaning and purpose of Constitutional Justice.

To know and understand the models of Constitutional Justice (diffuse, concentrated, and mixed).
To know and understand the structure, functions, and powers of the Spanish Constitutional Court.
To know and understand the different constitutional processes over which it has jurisdiction.
To know and understand the difference between interpretation and application of law, as well as the criteria for constitutional interpretation.

 

 

General

Code: 19038
Lecturer responsible:
Torres Díaz, María Concepción
Credits ECTS: 6,00
Theoretical credits: 1,80
Practical credits: 0,60
Distance-base hours: 3,60

Departments involved

  • Dept: State Legal Studies
    Area: Constitutional Right
    Theoretical credits: 1,8
    Practical credits: 0,6
    This Dept. is responsible for the course.
    This Dept. is responsible for the final mark record.

Study programmes where this course is taught