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Article Issues of Constitutionalization of the Individual Constitutional Complaint in Ukraine
Authors LUBOMYR LETNYANCHYN
Name of magazine Legal journal «Law of Ukraine» (Ukrainian version)
Issue 12 / 2018
Pages 55 - 76
Annotation

The Constitutional Court of Ukraine (CCU) as a constitutional jurisdiction body plays a key role in constitutionalization of the individual constitutional complaint in Ukraine. Currently, practical implementation of the constitutional complaint in Ukraine is just at the initial stage. For this reason, the CCU’s practice, particularly, in dealing with constitutional complaints, is very important, since this stage lays the foundation of the approaches, traditions, principles and methods upon which the CCU will build its operation and notify its potential applicants regarding the prospects of constitutional complaint consideration.

The purpose of the article is to analyze the operation practice of the constitutional jurisdiction body and its legal positions in terms of the impact it has on the establishment and development of the institute of constitutional complaint in Ukraine, and also to identify the theoretical and legal challenges relating to the exercise of the right to individual constitutional complaint at the initial stage, and to formulate the proposals for improving the respective CCU practice and the institute of constitutional complaint.

CCU, as the constitutional jurisdiction body, “the court of law”, a legitimate body of constitutionalization of the institute of constitutional complaint, responds to numerous constitutional complaints and at the same time formulates important legal positions. Additional requirements set out by it with regard to the contents of the constitutional complaint evidence the judicial activism of the latter and an attempt to enhance the “reasonability test” as a precondition of their admissibility. This is consistent with the nature of the constitutional complaint as an important universal means of protecting fundamental human rights. Thus, CCU encourages the constitutional complaint subjects to prepare the claim with a well-balanced, responsible and careful attitude because the effects of a constitutional complaint, if upheld, are of a general nature, unlike the consequences of a court decision. The constitutional and court perspective will be open for a constitutional complaint which substantiates a constitutionally important issue in the domain of constitutional rights and freedoms. The burden of identifying and substantiating a constitutionally important issue rests with the constitutional complaint subjects. Focusing only on constitutional principles and guarantees in support of unconstitutionality of a law (or its separate provision) without specifying the constitutional rights and freedoms which have been violated will not have a convincing legal effect, and this does not preclude their widespread use to strengthen the reasonableness of requirements and to demonstrate the problem. This is what the author defines as the specifics of the constitutional complaint and an implicit signal of CCU that it is really “the court of law”. Under such circumstances, legal entities at private law are in the most vulnerable position.

 Difficult aspects pertaining to the preparation of a constitutional complaint should be counterbalanced by the capabilities not only of the community of attorneys but also professionals of law, particularly, constitutional law, and also scholars, constitutional experts in human rights, human rights advocates and human rights organizations.

 

Keywords constitutional complaint; constitutionalization; constitutionally important issue; “the court of law”; Constitutional Court of Ukraine; fundamental human rights
References

List of legal documents 
Legislation 
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