When Constitutional Courts Were Founded
The year each country first set up a specialised court or council to decide constitutional questions. Countries where ordinary courts decide them, such as the United States, are not shown.
Austria1920
The first, designed by the jurist Hans Kelsen.
The year is when the first court or council with this role was set up or began to sit, even if the institution was later reformed. Countries without a specialised constitutional court are not shown.
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These charts show a single number for each country, from our own knowledge: the year something first happened, or the time the law sets for it. Where a rule differs by region, by type of case or by group of people, the note says so. Rules are reformed from time to time, so check the current law. It is general information, not legal advice.
The same numbers, as a table
| Country | Year | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Albania | 1992 | |
| Algeria | 1989 | |
| Armenia | 1996 | |
| Austria | 1920 | The first, designed by the jurist Hans Kelsen. |
| Belgium | 1984 | First as the Court of Arbitration; renamed the Constitutional Court in 2007. |
| Bulgaria | 1991 | |
| Colombia | 1991 | |
| Croatia | 1991 | |
| Cyprus | 1960 | |
| Czechia | 1993 | |
| Egypt | 1979 | The Supreme Constitutional Court. |
| France | 1958 | The Constitutional Council, which began as a body that reviewed laws before they came into force. |
| Georgia | 1996 | |
| Germany | 1951 | |
| Hungary | 1990 | |
| Indonesia | 2003 | |
| Italy | 1956 | |
| Latvia | 1996 | |
| Lithuania | 1993 | |
| Luxembourg | 1997 | |
| Moldova | 1995 | |
| Mongolia | 1992 | |
| North Macedonia | 1991 | |
| Poland | 1985 | |
| Portugal | 1982 | |
| Romania | 1992 | |
| Russia | 1991 | Reconstituted after 1993. |
| Slovakia | 1993 | |
| Slovenia | 1991 | |
| South Africa | 1995 | |
| South Korea | 1988 | |
| Spain | 1980 | |
| Taiwan | 1948 | As the Council of Grand Justices. |
| Thailand | 1998 | |
| Turkey | 1962 | |
| Ukraine | 1996 |
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