The autonomous tribunals are
specialized institutions prescribed by
the Constitution that are not part of any of the three branches of power.
The fact that tribunals are not included either in the judiciary nor into
the executive power, does not exclude them from the judicial review that
guarantees a fair trial. On the contrary, the removal of the traditional
powers, especially those elected by the voters, guarantee their independence in
the resolution of electoral disputes and the qualification of the election.
The existence of an autonomous electoral tribunal is a huge step forward
for those countries where the powers themselves were in charge of qualifying
the lawfulness of their own elections. This is the first step to overcome the
traditional model of conflict resolution based on political debate and become a
new judicial system of dispute resolution based on legal procedures.
Autonomy can also be the following step after the integration to the
judiciary. If that is the case, autonomy is beneficial if it is required by
circumstances, provided that it does not affect the principles of the
jurisdictional process. Thus, one of the benefits would be to prevent the
judiciary from interfering in political matters.
In Latin America, judicial agencies are established in sixteen out of the
eighteen continental countries. Nine of those sixteen electoral courts are
autonomous (Costa Rica, Chile, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras,
Panama, Peru, and Uruguay).
