Sidney Seminar: Ana Micaela Alterio

1 May 2025

In this Sidney Seminar, Professor Ana Micaela Alterio (Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México) presented on ‘The Transformation of Mexican Constitutional Justice’. She examined the evolution of constitutional justice in Mexico over the last 30 years, starting with the judicial reform of 1994, which created a Constitutional Court. She highlighted key milestones in the Court’s operations, including the 2011 human rights reform. The discussion then focused on how Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s election in 2018 changed the relationship between the Court and the Executive Power, leading to a confrontation. As part of this confrontation, the judiciary developed jurisprudential mechanisms to challenge certain government policies, such as suspending laws and rulings with general effects. In response, the government proposed a package of constitutional reforms targeting the judiciary.

Professor Alterio explained that after Claudia Sheinbaum’s decisive victory in the 2024 presidential election, Congress passed these reforms. Under the banner of advancing the ‘fourth transformation’ of the country, the system of division of powers was modified entirely. The judicial system underwent structural changes, including the introduction of popular elections for all federal and local judges. A Disciplinary Tribunal was established to oversee the functioning of the judiciary, and the Amparo trial’s effects were limited to restrict the power of judges in the face of ‘popular will’. Several autonomous constitutional bodies were also dissolved. This process has resulted in the concentration of power within a nationalist and dubiously liberal narrative. While it seeks to legitimise itself by invoking the ideals of participatory democracy and inter-branch collaboration, the reality is the subordination of all power to the presidential will.

Professor Alterio posited that the judicial overhaul in Mexico is majoritarian but not democratic. It undermines the administration of justice, lowers checks and balances, and opens cracks that can lead to corruption and cooptation of the judiciary. Ultimately, she concluded, the reforms follow the recent trend of democratic decline around the world, exemplifying what David Landau calls ‘abusive constitutionalism’ or what Kim Lane Scheppele calls ‘autocratic legalism’.

Following Professor Alterio’s presentation, participants at the seminar gave their comments and questions, leading into further discussions. The event was chaired by Natalia Morales Cerda (UCL Laws).

Watch a video recording of the seminar on UCL Laws’ YouTube channel, or view it directly below.