November 5, 2024 – The Barra Mexicana de Abogados (Mexican Bar Association) and Stanford Law School’s Rule of Law Impact Lab have jointly presented an amicus curiae brief to Mexico’s Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación, SCJN). This brief challenges the recently enacted Reforma Judicial Mexico, also known as “Plan C,” arguing that it violates Mexico’s international human rights obligations.
Filed with the nation’s highest court, the document contends that the contested judicial overhaul infringes upon Mexico’s commitments under international human rights law. The heart of the mexican judicial reform is a constitutional amendment mandating the replacement of all state and federal judges—including the justices of the Supreme Court—through popular elections. The brief submitted by both organizations asserts that the process used to adopt this reform undermines the rights of indigenous communities, judges, women, and other affected groups to participate in public affairs. Furthermore, it argues that the reforma judicial mexico contravenes international standards concerning judicial independence and due process.
The amicus curiae also emphasizes that international norms empower the Supreme Court to review constitutional reforms that impact human rights. It further details the established practice of constitutional courts in other countries to substantively analyze such reforms.
Víctor Olé Peláez, President of the Barra Mexicana de Abogados, stated, “Anyone who believes that the defense of the Constitution is a closed matter does not understand the current situation in Mexico or the pending legal discussions. The Barra Mexicana de Abogados has always worked with a focus on strengthening the Constitutional Rule of Law and will continue to contribute its work and conviction to improve access to justice for all Mexicans. With this amicus brief before the SCJN, we reaffirm our defense of the legal profession and justice.”
The brief was presented in response to actions challenging the constitutionality of the judicial reform mexico, brought before the Supreme Court by political parties and various deputies from the Congress of the State of Zacatecas. Parties involved in these actions include the National Action Party (PAN), Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Movimiento Ciudadano, and Unidad Democrática de Coahuila.
Following the filing of these challenges, a new constitutional reform was published on October 31, 2024, aiming to eliminate the federal judiciary’s power to review constitutional reforms. Prior to this, on October 28, 2024, the Barra Mexicana de Abogados and the Rule of Law Impact Lab issued a joint statement, warning that this additional reform would violate both the Mexican Constitution and Mexico’s international obligations.
“Mexico’s international legal obligations, as well as the practice of other constitutional courts, support the Supreme Court’s authority to review this mexican judicial reform and declare it invalid,” asserted Amrit Singh, Professor of Practice and Executive Director of the Rule of Law Impact Lab at Stanford Law School. “Beyond its illegality, the reform will exacerbate existing problems with access to justice in Mexico. In the United States, the popular election of state court judges has politicized and undermined public confidence in the judicial system.”
The amicus brief references precedents, including a 2013 ruling by the Supreme Court of Argentina, which struck down a reform of the Council of the Magistracy. The Argentine reform sought to increase its membership and allow for the popular election of judges. The Argentine Court deemed this reform a violation of the separation of powers and judicial independence due to the politicization of the judge selection process.
In February 2024, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador proposed “Plan C,” a sweeping reforma judicial mexico that would replace approximately 7,000 state and federal judges through popular vote. In May 2024, the Barra Mexicana de Abogados and the Rule of Law Impact Lab released a report concluding that the reform contravened Mexico’s international obligations and posed a severe threat to judicial independence and the rule of law in the country. Despite judicial suspensions granted through federal amparos (protective injunctions), the reform was fast-tracked through Congress without sufficient deliberation and was published on September 15, 2024. Claudia Sheinbaum assumed the presidency of Mexico on October 1, 2024.
Read the full briefs:
READ THE AMICUS CURIAE BRIEF IN SPANISH
READ THE AMICUS CURIAE BRIEF IN ENGLISH
About the Barra Mexicana de Abogados
The Barra Mexicana, Colegio de Abogados, A.C., is a civil association established under Mexican law. Its mission is to foster among its members, and in society at large, a spirit of equity and the pursuit of security, justice, and the defense of all principles of law. It also aims to improve the administration of justice and the proper application of the law. More information: www.bma.org.mx
About the Rule of Law Impact Lab
The Rule of Law Impact Lab at Stanford Law School studies and deploys legal tools—litigation and legal research, documentation, and advocacy—in close collaboration with local practitioners and academics to combat democratic decline worldwide, including in the United States. More information: www.law.stanford.edu/rule-of-law-impact-lab
