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THE ESSENCE AND LEGAL FOUNDATIONS OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT'S
CONSIDERATION OF APPEALS FROM CITIZENS AND LEGAL ENTITIES IN
UZBEKISTAN
Abdunazarova Maxliyo Raximovna
TDYU Davlat boshqaruvi huquqi mutaxassisligi magistranti
Telefon: +998976448900
abdunazarovamaxliyo04@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15346179
Abstract.
This study conducts a legal analysis of the right of citizens and legal entities to
petition the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan for reviewing the constitutionality
of laws. Individuals have the right to appeal to the Constitutional Court if a law violates
constitutional rights and freedoms, has been applied in courts for a specific case, and all legal
remedies have been exhausted. The research examines the legal foundations of this mechanism,
current legislation, and the practices of the Constitutional Court. The work analyzes the
importance of ensuring constitutional justice in Uzbekistan's legal system, as well as the role of
this institution in safeguarding citizens' rights. The study concludes with recommendations for
maintaining legislative balance and strengthening adherence to the Constitution.
Keywords:
Constitutional Court, constitutional rights, constitutionality of law, mechanisms
of legal protection, freedoms of citizens, Constitution of Uzbekistan, judicial proceedings,
constitutional complaint.
In recent years, reforms in the judicial and legal sphere have not only ensured the
independence of the judiciary and the openness and transparency of courts but also strengthened
guarantees for protecting the rights and legitimate interests of citizens and entrepreneurs. In
accordance with the short-term strategy for elevating the judicial system to a qualitatively new
level for 2023-2026, the main objectives have been defined as: forming a truly fair judicial system
based on the idea of "For Human Dignity"; directing its activities towards effectively protecting
the interests of the people and human dignity; strengthening public trust, including that of
entrepreneurs, in the judicial system by ensuring the adoption of fair judicial decisions; and
creating all opportunities for citizens and entrepreneurs to defend their rights and legitimate
interests in courts
1
. This, in turn, paves the way for further strengthening the position of the
1
Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated January 16, 2023 No. UP-11 "On Additional Measures
to Further Expand Access to Justice and Increase the Efficiency of Courts" https://lex.uz/mact/-6358976
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Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the system of national government bodies
and increasing its role.
Granting the Constitutional Court of Uzbekistan the authority to consider appeals from
citizens and legal entities serves to ensure the conformity of state power with constitutional
principles, and also plays a crucial role in protecting the constitutional rights of citizens. This
function of the Constitutional Court is of significant importance in upholding the rule of law,
safeguarding human rights, and fostering democratic principles in the country.
A.Gafurov defines the essence of the constitutional complaint institution as follows: A
constitutional complaint is an appeal by citizens and legal entities to the constitutional justice
div, requesting to determine the constitutionality (conformity to the Constitution) of a specific
normative legal act when the rights and freedoms established in the Constitution are violated by
that normative legal act
2
.
While agreeing with the above definition, we believe that the essence of the Constitutional
Court's consideration of appeals from citizens and legal entities is the protection of their
constitutional rights. If citizens and legal entities consider their rights and freedoms to have been
violated, they may appeal to the Constitutional Court, which provides them with constitutional
protection.
The following classifications of appeals to the Constitutional Court exist:
1) Direct appeal - this is always carried out at the request of authorized state bodies if they
have doubts about the compliance of the disputed legislative acts with the provisions of the
Constitution. Its implementation is not directly related in any way to the emergence of a specific
legal fact or a practical issue.
There are the following types of direct appeals:
a) Public complaint
(Actio popularis), in Roman law, Actio popularis was understood as
an individual's actions in the interests of society. Kelsen notes this type of constitutional appeal as
the main guarantee of constitutional review in terms of every person's right to appeal to the
Constitutional Court, and does not present actio popularis as an effective solution due to inevitable
abuses
3
. In this type of constitutional control, which is considered the most comprehensive in
terms of scope, every member of society, as a guardian of the Constitution, based on his civic
2
Gafurov A.B "Formation and development of constitutional judicial control in Uzbekistan: issues of theory and
practice" Abstract Tashkent - 2022. Page 21
3
Achour R. Ben. “Le contrôle de la constitutionnalité des lois: quelle procédure?”, Actes du colloque international
«L’effectivité des droits fondamentaux dans les pays de la communauté francophone», Port-Louis (Île Maurice), 29—
30 septembre, 1er octobre 1993. P. 401 // URL: http://www.bibliotheque.refer. org/livre59/l5905.pdf.
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duty, can appeal to the Constitutional Court from the point of view of public interests, even if the
established law does not directly affect his interests at present.
b)
abstract complaint
(Quasi actio popularis - the necessity to prove legitimate interest) -
there are criteria for accepting this complaint for consideration. The quasi actio popularis
institution occupies a middle position between the abstract actio popularis and the normative
constitutional complaint.
2) Unlike the above, the basis for indirect appeals is the violation of constitutional rights
and freedoms of citizens and legal entities.
Types of indirect appeals:
a)
Appeal for constitutional protection
(recurso de amparo), which is a constitutional
oversight mechanism aimed at safeguarding the constitutional rights and freedoms of individuals,
legal entities, and government bodies based on judicial acts issued by courts of general
jurisdiction. This type of appeal covers a much broader range of issues.
b)
a specific constitutional complaint
- any person may file a complaint if they find that
their constitutional rights and freedoms have been violated in an individual act adopted on the
basis of a normative act. The decision on this issue is binding only on the parties. (Malta, Croatia,
Ghana, Gabon) (Panama, Paraguay, Colombia, Hungary)
There are also the following types of constitutional complaints:
full
- can apply to the constitutional court after exhausting all possibilities for the
protection of their rights on the issue of determining the constitutionality of any legal act
(Germany);
partially
- a distinctive feature of this type of complaint is the limited scope of the objects
of the constitutional complaint. This is mainly the issue of the constitutionality of a specific law
applied by the courts, which is disputed in the Constitutional Court. (For example, in the Russian
Federation and Uzbekistan, the issue of the constitutionality of laws applied in a specific case is
considered, not all normative legal acts). In Russia, a partial constitutional appeal model operates,
meaning that not every normative legal act, but rather the law applied in a specific case, can be the
object of appeal. In particular, in the Russian Federation, citizens' appeals for verification of the
constitutionality of laws are widespread, with approximately 15-20 thousand constitutional
complaints received annually
4
. If we pay attention to German practice, normative legal acts (laws
4
Обращения в Конституционный Суд РФ // URL: http://www.ksrf.ru/ru/Petition/Pages/NewReference.aspx. (дата
обращения: 9 января 2018 г.)
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and by-laws), law enforcement administrative acts, and court decisions are also the subject of a
constitutional complaint
5
.
In conclusion,
Firstly,
in accordance with Article 27 of the Constitutional Law "On the
Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan," appeals from citizens and legal entities to the
Constitutional Court are submitted in the form of complaints.
Secondly,
citizens and legal entities can appeal to the Constitutional Court not under any
circumstances, but only in a case that has been considered in court and has exhausted all the stages
of judicial defense. This justifies the fact that an indirect (specific constitutional complaint) type of
appeal operates in Uzbekistan.
Thirdly,
in Uzbekistan, citizens and legal entities can file complaints to the Constitutional
Court not against all normative acts, but only against laws. This means that a partial constitutional
complaint system is in effect in Uzbekistan.
Regarding the legal basis for the Constitutional Court's consideration of appeals from
citizens and legal entities in Uzbekistan, as a result of the comprehensive reforms being carried
out in all spheres of social life at the initiative of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the
guarantees of judicial protection of citizens' rights and freedoms, ensuring genuine independence
of the judiciary, and reliable protection of human rights and freedoms are being further
strengthened. The Action Strategy on five priority areas of development of the Republic of
Uzbekistan for 2017-2021 served as an important foundation for this.
In the resolution of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On the
Program of Measures to be Implemented by the Constitutional Court in Connection with the
Adoption of the New Constitutional Law "On the Constitutional Court of the Republic of
Uzbekistan": "In recent years, in accordance with the Action Strategy, the improvement of the
legal framework for the activities of the Constitutional Court has been reviewed in the context of
the new Uzbekistan, bringing to the forefront the need for further enhancement of the
Constitutional Court's activities.
Therefore, on April 27, 2021, the new Constitutional Law "On the Constitutional Court of
the Republic of Uzbekistan"
6
was adopted and entered into force. Its adoption marked the
beginning of a new era in the activities of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
One of the most important features of the new law is granting citizens and legal entities the
right to appeal to the Constitutional Court. It has been emphasized that "International experience
5
Benda, Klein. Verfassungsprozessrecht. C. F. Müller Verlag Heidelberg, 2004. S. 147
6
Constitutional Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan."
National Database of Legislation, March 18, 2020, No. 03/20/612/0326. https://lex.uz/acts/3221763
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in the field of constitutional proceedings demonstrates that the introduction of the institution of
appeals to the Constitutional Court by citizens and legal entities is an important mechanism for
effectively protecting human rights and freedoms"
7
Today, the legal basis for the Constitutional Court's consideration of appeals from citizens
and legal entities in Uzbekistan consists of the following:
1. Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan:
One of the innovations introduced in the
new version of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan, adopted on April 30, 2023, is the
institution of constitutional complaint. Initially, this institution, which entered our national
legislation as an important feature of a democratic state, was included in the Constitutional Law
"On the Constitutional Court" adopted in 2017. It was then enshrined as a constitutional norm in
Article 133 of the new Constitution. According to this article, citizens and legal entities have the
right to apply to the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan with a complaint
regarding the constitutionality of a law applied to them by a court in a specific case, if all other
means of judicial protection have been exhausted and the court proceedings have been concluded
8
.
2.
The Constitutional Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On the Constitutional
Court"
was adopted in a new edition on April 27, 2021. This law serves as the fundamental
document regulating the structure, powers, and activities of the Constitutional Court. It establishes
the procedures and conditions for petitioning the court. In particular, Article 27 of the law
enumerates the subjects entitled to apply to the Constitutional Court. Among these, it is
established that citizens and legal entities have the right to petition the Constitutional Court with a
complaint to verify the law's compliance with the Constitution if, in their opinion, the law violates
their constitutional rights and freedoms, does not conform to the Constitution of the Republic of
Uzbekistan, has been applied in a specific case where court proceedings have concluded, and all
other means of legal defense have been exhausted.
Article 28 establishes the grounds for considering cases in the Constitutional Court.
According to this article, appeals from state bodies and officials who have the right to address the
7
Resolution of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. 2 "On the Program of Measures
Implemented by the Constitutional Court in Connection with the Adoption of the New Constitutional Law "On the
Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan." 30.04.2021 http://www.konstsud.uz/uploads/2021/05/kck-2-
con.pdf
8
Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan (National Database of Legislation, 01.05.2023, No 03/23/837/0241),
https://lex.uz/docs/-6445145
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Constitutional Court, as well as complaints from citizens and legal entities, serve as the basis for
case consideration in the Constitutional Court
9
.
In summary, the Constitutional Court's consideration of appeals from citizens and legal
entities plays a crucial role in developing the rule of law in Uzbekistan. This court stands as one of
the fundamental institutions for safeguarding citizens' constitutional rights, reinforcing the
principle of separation of powers, ensuring the legality of governing bodies, and overseeing the
compliance of normative acts with existing constitutional principles.
References
1.
Constitutional Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On the Constitutional Court of the
Republic of Uzbekistan." National Database of Legislation, 28.04.2021, No
03/21/687/0380.
https://lex.uz/acts/-5391934?ONDATE=28.04.2021%2000#-5400101
2.
2.Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan (National Database of Legislation,
01.05.2023, No 03/23/837/0241),
3.
3.Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated January 16, 2023 No. UP-11
"On Additional Measures to Further Expand Access to Justice and Increase the Efficiency
4.
4.Resolution of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. 2 "On the
Program of Measures Implemented by the Constitutional Court in Connection with the
Adoption of the New Constitutional Law "On the Constitutional Court of the Republic of
Uzbekistan." 30.04.2021
http://www.konstsud.uz/uploads/2021/05/kck-2-con.pdf
5.
5.Benda, Klein. Verfassungsprozessrecht. C. F. Müller Verlag Heidelberg, 2004. S.
6.
6.Achour R. Ben. “Le contrôle de la constitutionnalité des lois: quelle procédure?”, Actes
du colloque international «L’effectivité des droits fondamentaux dans les pays de la
communauté francophone», Port-Louis (Île Maurice), 29— 30 septembre, 1er octobre
1993. P. 401 // URL: http://www.bibliotheque.refer. org/livre59/l5905.pdf.
7.
7.Gafurov A.B "Formation and development of constitutional judicial control in
Uzbekistan: issues of theory and practice" Abstract Tashkent - 2022.
8.
8.Обращения
в
Конституционный
Суд
РФ
//
URL:
http://www.ksrf.ru/ru/Petition/Pages/NewReference.aspx. (дата обращения: 9 января
2018 г.)
9
Constitutional Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan."
National
Database
of
Legislation,
28.04.2021,
No
03/21/687/0380.
https://lex.uz/acts/-
5391934?ONDATE=28.04.2021%2000#-5400101
