The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico is the highest court of Puerto Rico, having the ultimate judicial authority within Puerto Rico to interpret and decide questions of state law. It is head of the judicial branch of the Government of Puerto Rico, the other branches being the executive branch and the legislative branch. The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico is located in the city of San Juan.

Structure and powers

The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico was established by the Constitution of Puerto Rico in 1952. It is the only court required by the constitution. However, since Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States, there is also a Federal Court in the country. The justices (currently seven) are appointed by the Governor of Puerto Rico and confirmed by majority vote by the Senate of Puerto Rico. One of these seven justices serves as Chief Justice; the remaining members are designated Associate Justices. The justices end their term on the date they become seventy (70) years old.

The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico is only within the Constitution of Puerto Rico. It does not have power to meddle with or enforce Federal Law . (See Conflicts with the Federal Court for more information.)

Current justices

As of April 2005, the Justices of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico are:

• Chief Justice Federico Hernández Denton, appointed by Rafael Hernández Colón (1985), elevated by Sila Calderón (2004).
• Justice Francisco Rebollo López, appointed by Carlos Romero Barceló (1982).
• Justice Jaime Fuster Berlingeri, appointed by Rafael Hernández Colón (1992).
• Justice Efraín Rivera Pérez, appointed by Pedro Rosselló González (2000).
• Justice Liana Fiol Matta , appointed by Sila Calderón (2003).
• Justice Anabelle Rodríguez, appointed by Sila Calderón (2004).

There is one vacant seat as of April, 2005.

Conflicts with the Federal Court

According to the Constitution of Puerto Rico of 1952 the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court is only within laws of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. However, on several occasions the Federal Court on the island has taken jurisdiction on cases having to do with Puerto Rican law. The most controversial of these cases occurred in November 2004 when the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico declared that the all ballots should be counted during the Puerto Rico General Election of 2004 . The New Progressive Party then went to the Federal Court, claiming that some of the ballots should be nullified. Federal Judge Daniel Dominguez then took jurisdiction of the case, nullifying the decision of the Supreme Court.

On December 15, 2004, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit nullified the decision of Judge Dominguez, saying that questions on the electoral process of Puerto Rico are matters for the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico.

External links

• tribunalpr.org - official site, in Spanish.