ECUADOR Law and Practice Contributed by: Sebastian Corral Guevara, Miguel Pizarro Páez, María Fernanda Mencías Pérez, José Cisneros Pazmiño, Roque Bustamante Espinosa and Jorge Pizarro Páez, Flor Bustamante Pizarro & Hurtado
1. Legal System 1.1 Legal System and Judicial Order
• Other specialised courts: Ecuador also has admin - istrative litigation courts and tax litigation courts, which hear disputes involving public administration and tax matters, respectively • Constitutional Court: This is the highest authority for constitutional review and interpretation. It is an autonomous constitutional body that does not form part of the judicial branch. Its principal powers include abstract constitutional review, constitu - tional interpretation, the resolution of constitu - tional conflicts of competence, the adjudication of extraordinary actions for constitutional protection, and the selection and review of constitutional judg - ments. • Council of the Judiciary: This is the governing body responsible for the administration, management, discipline, evaluation and judicial career system of the judicial branch. The Attorney General’s Office and the Public Defend - er’s Office are autonomous organs of the judicial branch under the Organic Code of the Judiciary. The Attorney General’s Office directs criminal investiga - tions and exercises public criminal prosecution, while the Public Defender’s Office provides legal representa - tion to individuals who cannot afford private counsel. In addition to the ordinary judicial system, the Con - stitution recognises the jurisdiction exercised by the authorities of indigenous communities, peoples and nationalities within their ancestral territories, in accordance with their traditions and customary law, provided that such jurisdiction is exercised consist - ently with the Constitution and internationally recog - nised human rights. Ecuador also recognises domestic and international arbitration, as well as mediation, as constitutionally protected alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. Arbitration is governed by the Constitution, the Arbi - tration and Mediation Act, and the international trea - ties ratified by Ecuador.
Ecuador follows the civil law tradition, derived from the Roman-Germanic legal system and characterised by comprehensive statutory codification. The Consti - tution of the Republic of Ecuador, enacted in 2008, is the supreme law of the land and establishes both the principle of constitutional supremacy and the hierar - chy of legal norms. Accordingly, the order of prec - edence is: • the Constitution; • international treaties and conventions; • organic laws; ordinary laws; • regional regulations and district ordinances; • executive decrees and regulations; ordinances; agreements and resolutions; and • other acts and decisions of public authorities. Justice is administered through the Judicial Branch ( Función Judicial ), whose principal bodies are as fol - lows. • The National Court of Justice: The highest court within the ordinary judicial system, it is composed of 21 justices organised into specialised chambers. The Court primarily hears cassation appeals and other extraordinary remedies, develops binding case law in the circumstances established by law, and exercises the jurisdiction conferred upon it by the Constitution and the Organic Code of the Judiciary. • Provincial courts of justice: These are appel - late courts organised into specialised chambers according to subject matter. They hear appeals against judgments rendered by first-instance courts. Constitutional amendments approved in the 2024 referendum provide for the creation of specialised constitutional chambers within the provincial courts, subject to the enactment of the corresponding implementing legislation and institu - tional measures. • First-instance courts and judicial units: These are specialised courts. In cantons where the judicial workload does not justify specialised courts, multi- jurisdictional judicial units exercise jurisdiction over several matters.
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