Supreme Court of Spain
| Supreme Court of Spain | |
|---|---|
| Tribunal Supremo | |
 |
|
| Established | 1812 |
| Country | Spain |
| Location | Convent of the Salesas Reales, Madrid |
| Composition method | Appointed by Monarch on selection by the General Council of the Judicial Power |
| Authorized by | Constitution of Spain |
| Judge term length | Appointed for life until retired at 70 |
| No. of positions | 74 (may change by Act of Parliament) |
| Website | Portal del Tribunal Supremo |
| President of the Supreme Court | |
| Currently | Carlos Lesmes Serrano |
| Since | December 2013 |
The Supreme Court of Spain (Spanish: Tribunal Supremo de España) is the highest court in Spain for all matters not pertaining to the Spanish Constitution. The court meets in the Convent of the Salesas Reales in Madrid and consists of a president and an indeterminate number of magistrates, appointed to the five chambers of the court.
The Supreme Court is the court of last resort and can provide finality in all legal issues. It can exercise original jurisdiction over matters of great importance but usually functions as an appellate court able to investigate procedural irregularities arising from actions in the national courts or Provincial courts. It can order ordinary and extraordinary remedies against decisions of lower courts according to the provisions of Spanish law.
The Supreme Court is responsible for processing substantial complaints of wrongdoing against prominent persons such as government ministers, senators representatives and members of the various regional parliaments, senior judges, including the President and judges of the Constitutional Court, the highest tribunal in the country.
It also processes formal applications by the procurator (public prosecutor) to outlaw political parties,
Generally, there is no avenue of appeal against a Supreme Court decision although in criminal matters, the Crown may exercise the prerogative of mercy to invalidate sentences imposed or ratified by the Supreme Court, but constitutionally, such appeals are resolved by the Council of Ministers and then formalized by the monarch, as head of state.
Supreme Court decisions may, exceptionally, be overruled by the Constitutional Court if there has been an infringement of rights and freedoms of citizens embodied in the Spanish Constitution of 1978 or by decisions emanating from the European Court of Human Rights since Spain is a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights.
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Wikipedia