Academic Symposium | When the Judiciary Meets Politics: Unconstitutionality Controversies and Institutional Prospects of the Amendments to the Constitutional Court Procedure Act

Background

The amended provisions of the Constitutional Court Procedure Act officially took effect on January 25, 2025. Because there are currently only 8 incumbent Grand Justices, under the amended provisions, the Constitutional Court is barred from conducting substantive deliberations on cases or rendering judgments.

The legislative process of these amendments—from proposal and voting to promulgation and entry into force—has sparked intense concern within the legal academia and society at large. The case has now entered judicial proceedings: in addition to the Democratic Progressive Party Caucus in the Legislative Yuan filing a petition for constitutional litigation against the amendments, numerous individuals have also filed petitions for provisional injunctions.

To clarify the constitutional and legal controversies surrounding these amendments and to explore the development of constitutional principles such as the separation of powers in our constitutional interpretation, the Judicial Reform Foundation has invited organizations dedicated to the development of constitutional democracy in Taiwan—including the Public Law Center of the National Taiwan University College of Law, the Constitutional Litigation Practice Committee of the Taiwan Bar Association, and the Constitutional Reform Committee of the Taiwan Bar Association—to jointly host this academic symposium.

In-Person Registration

Online Registration

Time

Saturday, March 22, 2025, 09:20–17:30

Venue

Linsen Hall, College of Law, National Taiwan University (Intersection of Xinhai Rd. and Sec. 2, Fuxing S. Rd.)
Room 1301, 3rd Floor

Agenda

Time	Duration	Schedule
09:00-09:20	20 mins	Check-in & Admission
09:20-09:30	10 mins	Opening Remarks　Huang Hsu-T'ien / Chairperson, Judicial Reform Foundation 　　　　　Lin Ch'un-Yuan / Associate Professor, College of Law, National Taiwan University
[Session I] Topic: Unconstitutional Review Procedures Reviewing the Constitutional Court Procedure Act Moderator: Huang Hung-Hsia / Former Grand Justice, Judicial Yuan
09:30-09:55	25 mins	Presenter Lin Chia-Ho / Associate Professor, College of Law, National Chengchi University
09:55-10:10	15 mins	Discussant Lin Ch'un-Yuan / Associate Professor, College of Law, National Taiwan University
10:10-10:35	25 mins	Presenter Li Yi-Li / Associate Professor, Institute of Technology Law, National Tsing Hua University
10:35-10:50	15 mins	Discussant Li Shao-Man / Assistant Professor, Academy of Innovative Semiconductor and Sustainable Smart Manufacturing, National Cheng Kung University
10:50-11:20	30 mins	General Discussion
11:20-11:30	10 mins	Q&A
11:30-13:00	90 mins	Lunch
[Session II] Topic: Unconstitutionality Controversies of the Amended Provisions of the Constitutional Court Procedure Act Moderator: Hsu Yu-Hsiu / Former Grand Justice, Judicial Yuan
13:00-13:25	25 mins	Presenter Chang Chia-Yin / Distinguished Professor, Soochow University Law School
13:25-13:40	15 mins	Discussant Ch'eng Ming-Hsiu / Distinguished Professor, Soochow University Law School
13:40-13:55	15 mins	Discussant Chou Yu-Hsiu / Chairperson, Constitutional Reform Committee, Taiwan Bar Association
13:55-14:10	15 mins	Discussant Lu Li-Hsiang / Associate Professor, Graduate Institute of Education and Law, National Taipei University of Education
14:10-14:50	40 mins	General Discussion
14:50-15:00	10 mins	Q&A
15:00-15:20	20 mins	Tea Break
[Session III] Topic: When the Judiciary Meets Politics: The Tug-of-War Between Parliamentary Democracy and the Constitutional Court Moderator: Hsu Wei-Ch'un / Associate Professor, Department of Financial and Economic Law, Chung Yuan Christian University
15:20-15:45	25 mins	Presenter Fan Hsiu-Yu / Associate Professor, Graduate Institute of National Development, National Taiwan University
15:45-16:00	15 mins	Discussant Liang Chih-Ming / Professor, Graduate Institute of Medical and Biotechnology Law, Taipei Medical University
16:00-16:25	25 mins	Presenter Ni Shih-Chieh / Adjunct Assistant Professor, College of International Affairs, National Chengchi University
16:25-16:40	15 mins	Discussant Su Tzu-Chiao / Professor, Department of Political Science, Soochow University
16:40-17:10	30 mins	General Discussion
17:10-17:20	10 mins	Q&A
17:20-17:30	10 mins	Concluding Remarks by Session III Moderator

Organizer

Judicial Reform Foundation

Co-organizers

Public Law Center, College of Law, National Taiwan University
Constitutional Litigation Practice Committee, Taiwan Bar Association
Constitutional Reform Committee, Taiwan Bar Association
Judicial Reform Committee, Taiwan Bar Association