The Exceptional Nature of Constitutional Review and Adjudication of a Budget Act Already Enacted and Published. Commentary on Constitutional Court judgment N° 15.981-24

Abstract

Based on the Chilean Constitutional Court’s decision No. 15,981, which declared the unconstitutionality of several articles and annotations of the already enacted and published 2025 Budget Law, this paper analyzes the exceptional nature of constitutional review in this type of legislation, as well as the effects of the subsequent ineffectiveness of the challenged provisions. It also examines prior case law and the Executive Branch’s practice in correcting promulgations, concluding that the existing constitutional and legal framework contains gaps that generate uncertainty regarding legal certainty and the scope of these rulings.