south america

MERCOSUR

Website of MERCOSUR, the Southern Common Market, a South American trading bloc which includes Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Venezuela and Bolivia. The Treaty of Asunción 1991 and the Protocol of Ouro Preto 1994, the establishing treaties, are given on the site along with documents of MERCOSUR bodies - meeting minutes, reports, regulations and trade statistics. The site can be viewed in Spanish, Portuguese and English although information in English is limited.

Congreso de la Republica

Website of the Congress of the Republic of Peru. The site has information on the role and functions of the Congress, a copy of the Constitution and an outline of the legislative process. There are profiles of MPs and information on the work of the various committees. The site can be viewed in French, German, English and Spanish

Constitution of Colombia

Electronic copy of the 1991 Colombian Constitution made freely available online by the Comparative Constitutions Project at the University of Texas at Austin. The Constitution is provided in PDF and is amended up to 2015. There are chapters on fundamental rights, the organisation of the state and the role of the executive, legislative and judicial branches.

Constitutional Court of Colombia

The role of the Colombian Constitutional Court is to determine the constitutionality of laws and amendments of the Constitution. It also protects the fundamental rights of the people under the constitution. There are profiles of the justices, a full text copy of the Constitution and abstracts of the main decisions of the Court. The site can be viewed in Spanish and English.

Supreme Court of Colombia

Official website of the Colombian Supreme Court which is the highest court for civil and criminal matters in Colombia. The site has information about the role of the court, its members, news items and court rules. Full text decisions can be searched by keyword or using a range of parameters. PDF copies of the Judicial Gazette are available for the years from 1887 to 1999. The site can be viewed in Spanish only.

Venezuela National Assembly

Website of the unicameral National Assembly of Venezuela (Asamblea Nacional) which is composed solely of a Chamber of Deputies. The site has profiles of the deputies and information on the make up and work of the various committees. Laws dating back to the early twentieth century can be viewed in full and there are national and international news items. The site can be viewed in Spanish only.

Supreme Court of Bolivia

Website of the Supreme Court of Bolivia (Tribunal Supremo de Justicia). The site outlines the role of the court and gives details of the judges. There are links to departmental courts and to court publications including summaries of recent cases. Full text laws relevant to the Supreme Court are also given on the site. The website can be viewed in Spanish only.

Judicial Power and High Courts in Latin America

Online article providing an introduction to judicial power and the court systems in Latin America written by Gloria Orrego Hoyos who is Professor of Law and Legal Research at the Universidad de San Andrés and Universidad Torcuato Di Tella in Buenos Aires. The guide was published in 2021 on the Globalex website and made freely available by the Hauser Global Law School Program at the New York University School of Law. The author provides an overview to judicial power in the region, the constitutional courts and the court system in each country along with links to relevant resources.

Constituciones Hispanoamericas

The Constituciones Hispanoamericas website provides free online access to Spanish constitutions (both current and historical) and those of Latin American countries. The site forms part of the Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes digital library which is hosted by the University of Alicante in Spain. As well as the catalogue of constitutions and related documents there is background and historical information on Spanish and Latin American constitutionalism and a page of related web links. The site is available in Spanish only.

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