What does the impeachment process against the Court consist of?

Impeachment is the method established by the National Constitution to remove the country's highest authorities. It is in charge of Congress and can only reach the president, the vice president, the chief of the cabinet of ministers and the judges of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation.

The removal of any of the judges with a rank lower than the members of the highest court since the constitutional reform of 1994 is the responsibility of the Council of the Magistracy.

It is not a judicial process but one of a political nature, so its consequences only apply in this field.

Article 60 of the Constitution establishes that "its ruling will have no effect other than to dismiss the accused, and even declare him incapable of holding any honorary, trustworthy or paid job in the Nation." If there were any, the criminal responsibility of the accused is in charge of the ordinary courts.

The grounds for impeachment can be three.

The "poor performance of their functions" is a subjective causal (political) which is why it constitutes the easiest way to achieve the dismissal of an official.

The process begins in the Chamber of Deputies. Any official or citizen can present a request for prosecution against the ministers of the Court, which may or may not be accepted by the Impeachment Commission.

If it is considered admissible, the Commission launches a summary investigation taking the necessary measures, including the statement of the accused. Once the investigation is concluded, it is necessary to issue an opinion, which is approved by a simple majority, for the impeachment to begin or to be dismissed.

For the lower house to become an accuser, two thirds of the votes are needed. Once that number is reached (something that requires an important political consensus), the Chamber elects one or two deputies who will be in charge of presenting the accusation before the Upper House, the Senate, which is in charge of resolving the case. To achieve the removal, the votes of at least two thirds of the senators present are required.

The first time in Argentina that a Court fell for impeachment was in 1947, at the initiative of Juan Domingo Perón. On that occasion, the members of the highest court were dismissed for their responsibility in what was called "the infamous decade."

The next case was at the beginning of the first presidency of Néstor Kirchner, which prompted the impeachment of 5 of the 9 judges of the Court of "automatic majority" that Carlos Menem had set up: Julio Nazareno, Adolfo Vázquez, Eduardo Moliné O' Connor, Guillermo Lopez, and Antonio Boggiano. Three of them, Nazareno, López and Vázquez resigned before the end of the process and thus avoided their dismissal.

It is in charge of Congress and can only reach the president, the vice president, the chief of the cabinet of ministers and the judges of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation.