High Court of Justice of Catalonia

This article is about the judicial body. For the pre-1714 legislature of Catalonia, see Catalan Courts.

High Court of Justice of Catalonia
Tribunal Superior de Justícia de Catalunya
Palau de Justícia, seat of the TSJC
Established	1989
Jurisdiction	Catalonia
Location	Passeig de Lluís Companys, Barcelona
Composition method	Partisan election
Authorised by	Ley Orgánica del Poder Judicial
Appeals to	Supreme Court National Court (In some administrative law cases)
Website	www.poderjudicial.es
President of the High Court of Justice of Catalonia
Currently	Jesús María Barrientos Pacho
Since	January 2016

The High Court of Justice of Catalonia (Catalan: Tribunal Superior de Justícia de Catalunya, TSJC) is the highest body and last judicial instance of the Spanish judiciary in Catalonia. Unlike the Parliament of Catalonia (legislative branch) or the Executive Council of Catalonia (executive branch), the TSJC is not a part of the Generalitat of Catalonia, the autonomous system of self-government of the community, although the Catalan government has some powers over it, especially in material resources.

The TSJC regulates the functions of the judges and looks over the different provincial courts. The TSJC is the final appellate court in Catalan territory, notwithstanding the right of a citizen to appeal to the Spanish Supreme Court and/or the European Court of Justice.

The TSJC was created on 23 May 1989 with the Organic Law of Judicial Authority (Spanish: Ley Orgánica del Poder Judicial), as part of the process of devolution to Catalonia from the Spanish government, started in 1979. Its headquarters are located at the Palau de Justícia, Barcelona.

Composition

Organization

The High Court of Justice of consists of three courts, although a fourth, for Minors, has been proposed.

• Civil and Penal (Sala Civil i Penal): Five magistrates, including the President of the Tribunal.
• Contentious-Administrative (Sala Contenciosa-Administrativa): Fourteen magistrates, distributed in four sections.
• Social (Sala Social): Sixteen magistrates, distributed in four sections.

President

Appointment process

Candidates need to obtain a three fifths (13) supermajority of the 21 votes of the General Council of Judicial Authority (Spanish: Consejo General del Poder Judicial).

Presidents

• José Antonio Somalo Giménez (1989–1994)
• Guillem Vidal Andreu (1994–2004)
• Maria Eugènia Alegret i Burgués (2004–2010)
• Miguel Ángel Gimeno Jubero (2010 - January 2016)
• Jesús María Barrientos Pacho (January 2016 – present)

See also

• High Court of Justice of Cantabria
• Separation of Powers
• Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 1979
• Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006
• Tribunal de Cassació