How is your application examined?
After the Court has received your initial application, it will examine it to see if your application is complete and if it is admissible. Due to the fact that a significant number of petitions are submitted to the Constitutional Court of Ukraine in violation of the Law, the Law and the Rules of Procedure provide for a special procedure for their preliminary processing by the Secretariat. Thus, the Secretariat shall conduct preliminary review of applications for compliance with the requirements established by the Law.
Where the form of a constitutional complaint is non-compliant with this Law, the Head of the Secretariat shall return it to the applicant indicating which requirements of the Law it does not meet. Any return of a constitutional complaint shall not preclude repeat application to the Court in compliance with this Law.
The verification takes place within one working day from the day of the registration of the constitutional complaint. After that, the complaint is transferred to the reporting judge. The judge prepares decision within one month whether to open constitutional proceedings or refuse to open constitutional proceedings.
The term of constitutional proceedings should not exceed six months.
If your application is accepted, it will be placed on a list until it has its turn to be examined. When the Court examines your application, it will request the specific institution which issued the law or regulation to give its response to your complaints. The Court may also ask you to provide additional observations or information.
The Court usually examines cases in written proceedings, which means that there will be no oral hearing. The Court may decide to hold an oral hearing in exceptional cases. In that case you will be notified about such a hearing.
How long will it take?
The full examination of your application, including a judgement of the Constitutional Court can take about 6-7 months according to the Law. In more complex cases it may take longer.