A) The Position, Composition, Competence, and Legal Effect of the Decisions of the Constitutional Court
The position, composition, competence, and legal effect of the decisions of the Constitutional Court are specifically regulated by the Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia.
The manner of operation and the proceedings before the Constitutional Court, in accordance with the Constitution, are regulated by the Court through its own act. Such an act was the Rules of Procedure of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of North Macedonia, adopted on 7 October 1992, with amendments and supplements in 2019, 2020, and 2021.
As of 1 September 2024, a new Act of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of North Macedonia has come into force.
B) According to the Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia, the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia is the representative body of the citizens and the holder of legislative power in the Republic, the President of the Republic of Macedonia represents the Republic, the Government of the Republic of Macedonia is the holder of executive power, and judicial power is exercised by the courts. All these organs, in accordance with the principle of separation of powers, exercise their rights and duties within the scope of their competence based on and within the framework of the Constitution and the law. The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Macedonia, in this regard, is an institution of the Republic that safeguards constitutionality and legality.
From the perspective of the relationships between the various holders of power within the organisation of state authority, the Constitutional Court, by virtue of its constitutional position, does not fall within the system of state authority but is a separate constitutional institution with a status, composition, organisation, and competence specifically determined by the Constitution. It is neither organisationally nor functionally derived from the legislative body, nor is it accountable to it. The protection of constitutionality and legality lies outside the functions of state power and is a distinct and independent function, the exercise of which is beyond any form of mutual interaction between the legislative and executive authorities. Consequently, the Constitutional Court is one of the factors in the realisation of the Constitution and, by extension, in the implementation of the constitutional framework governing the organisation of state power. Like all other constitutional institutions, it derives the basis and limits of its function solely from the Constitution and exists to ensure its realisation. This position of the Constitutional Court simultaneously guarantees that the conditions for exercising constitutional-judicial functions are protected in advance from being altered by current political powerholders to align this function with daily political needs and interests. Through its constitutional definition, a degree of permanence is ensured for these conditions, within the limits of the stability of the Constitution, as the supreme legal act of the country.
The constitutional position of the Constitutional Court enables it, in exercising its constitutional-judicial function, to maintain distance from any political authority, particularly from those currently in power, and to perform its duties continuously and consistently, regardless of changes in political leadership. Irrespective of the intensity and scope of its functions, the Constitutional Court remains actively engaged in ensuring the protection of constitutionality and legality. In doing so, it becomes a guarantor of the rule of law and a significant societal factor in the implementation of the Constitution, eliminating arbitrariness and capriciousness in the interpretation, application, and enforcement of the Constitution and laws. During this transitional period, the Constitutional Court has, through its work, prevented and avoided the risk of assuming characteristics of an executive body engaged in operational daily politics or becoming subordinate to the legislative and executive branches of authority.
The Constitutional Court does not create law, nor does it determine what constitutes law; rather, it identifies what constitutes a violation of the law. It does not prescribe original legal norms but instead examines, reviews, and ultimately determines whether the prescribed norms and established relations are in accordance with the Constitution and the law. Decisions of the Constitutional Court are the result of constitutional or legal violations and, therefore, have an interventionist character. The essence of this function lies in upholding constitutionality, legality, and the rule of law, which means that there is no higher constitution than the Constitution, no higher law than the law, that no one holds more power than that conferred upon them by the Constitution and laws, that no individual is obliged to endure violence against their person, that every individual has the right to exercise universally accepted freedoms and rights, that no one has the right to abuse those freedoms and rights, and that everyone is obliged to fulfil their duties and obligations.
By performing its functions derived from its competence, the Constitutional Court increasingly assumes a role as a societal factor that, respecting the principle of separation of powers, strengthens the relationships among the branches of government, affirms their distinct roles, and enhances public trust in constitutionality and legality as essential components of the overall legal order of the country. By ensuring the primacy and supremacy of the Constitution over laws and all other regulations, the Constitutional Court guarantees the coexistence of the legal order.
As a result of its position and role, there has been a growing number of submissions requesting proceedings to review the constitutionality and legality of various laws and regulations, as well as requests for the protection of specific human and civil rights. This is undoubtedly an expression and confirmation of the democratisation of societal relations and the increased trust of citizens in the Constitutional Court as the guardian of constitutionality and legality. The Constitutional Court may not always have been able to fully address all requests and initiatives, primarily due to their lack of legal basis and the nature and scope of its competence, but never due to considerations of expediency or to protect the reputation of any institution. The Constitutional Court does not recognise the infallibility of any entity, nor does it seek out errors at all costs.