Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation

Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation
Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation
Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación
	19°25′52.01″N 99°7′55.58″W / 19.4311139°N 99.1321056°W
Established	1825
Location	Pino Suárez no. 2, Colonia Centro, Delegación Cuauhtémoc, C.P. 06065, Mexico City
Coordinates	19°25′52.01″N 99°7′55.58″W / 19.4311139°N 99.1321056°W
Composition method	Supreme Court
Authorized by	Constitution of Mexico
Judge term length	15 years
Number of positions	11
Website	https://www.scjn.gob.mx/
President
Currently	Norma Lucía Piña Hernández
Since	2 January 2023

The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (Spanish: Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación, SCJN) is the Mexican institution serving as the country's federal high court and the spearhead organisation for the judiciary of the Mexican Federal Government. It consists of eleven magistrates, known as ministers of the court, one of whom is designated the court's president.

Judges of the SCJN are appointed for 15 years.^[1] They are ratified through affirmation by the Senate from a list proposed by the President of the Republic. The ministers chosen will select from among themselves who shall be the President of the Court to serve a four-year period; any given minister may serve out more than one term as president, but may not do so consecutively.

Requirements for holding a seat on the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation

Be a natural born citizen of Mexico.
Be no less than 35 years of age nor over 65 years of age at the time of one's appointment
Have held a law degree for at least 10 years.
To have a good reputation and have not have been convicted of theft, fraud, forgery, breach of trust, or any other offense which could imply a punishment of more than one year in prison.
Not have been Director for Domestic Affairs, Chief of an Administrative Department, Attorney General of the Republic or Federal District Attorney, Senator, Member of Parliament, Governor of any State, or Chief Executive of the Federal District during the year prior to his or her appointment.

The Constitution requires that the appointment of ministers of the court should fall to those persons who have served ably, effectively and honorably in the administration of justice, or to those who have distinguished themselves by their honor, competence and professional background in the exercise of their duties.

Ministers may take leave of their posts for three reasons:

The end of their terms
Relinquishment, which is only allowed in serious cases, all of which must be affirmed by the President and accepted or discarded by the Senate.
Voluntary retirement: Proceeds when the interested party requests their retirement, as long as they meet the conditions of age and seniority.

Supreme Court building

The court itself is located just off the main plaza of Mexico City on the corners of Pino Suarez and Carranza Streets. It was built between 1935 and 1941 by Mexican architect Antonio Muñoz Garcia.^[2] Prior to the Conquest, this site was reserved for the ritual known as Dance of the Flyers which is still practiced today in Papantla. Hernán Cortés claimed the property after the Conquest and its ownership was in dispute during much of the colonial period with Cortes' heirs, the city government, and the Royal and Pontifical University all claiming rights. It was also the site of a very large market known as El Volador.^[3]

Within the building, there are four flanks painted in 1941 by José Clemente Orozco, two of which are named The Social Labor Movement and Commonwealth. There is also a mural done by American artist George Biddle entitled "War and Peace" at the entrance to the law library.^[3] The building also contains a mural by Rafael Cauduro, which "graphically illustrates the Gran Guignol of Mexican torture",^{[citation needed]} and includes a depiction of the 1968 Tlatelolco massacre as well as "a cut-away of a prison, perhaps the infamous Lecumberri Black Palace where student leaders who escaped death were jailed."^{[citation needed]}

While this building is still the chief seat for the Supreme Court, an alternative site at Avenida Revolución was opened in 2002.^[4]

Current make-up of the Supreme Court

Title	Name	Birth	Appointer	Affirmation by the Senate	Age at appt.	Elected / Length of service
President	Norma Lucía Piña Hernández^[5]	29 July 1960 (age 64)	Enrique Peña Nieto	79	63	10 December 2015 8 years, 6 months
Minister	Luis María Aguilar Morales^[6]	4 November 1949 (age 74) in Mexico City	Felipe Calderón	91	60	1 December 2009 14 years, 6 months
Minister	Jorge Mario Pardo Rebolledo^[7]	1 February 1961 (age 63) in Xalapa, Veracruz	Felipe Calderón	91	50	10 February 2011 13 years, 4 months
Minister	Alfredo Gutiérrez Ortiz Mena^[8]	14 October 1969 (age 54) in Cuernavaca, Morelos	Felipe Calderón	103	41	1 December 2012 11 years, 6 months
Minister	Alberto Pérez Dayán^[9]	13 December 1960 (age 63) in Mexico City	Felipe Calderón	104	51	3 December 2012 11 years, 6 months
Minister	Javier Laynez Potisek^[10]	2 June 1959 (age 65) in Torreón, Coahuila	Enrique Peña Nieto	81	56	10 December 2015 8 years, 6 months
Minister	Juan Luis González Alcántara Carrancá^[11]	19 August 1949 (age 74) in Mexico City	Andrés Manuel López Obrador	114	69	20 December 2018 5 years, 5 months
Minister	Yasmín Esquivel Mossa^[12]	15 September 1963 (age 60) in Mexico City	Andrés Manuel López Obrador	95	55	12 March 2019 5 years, 3 months
Minister	Margarita Ríos Farjat^[13]	13 September 1973 (age 50) in Monterrey, Nuevo León	Andrés Manuel López Obrador	94	46	5 December 2019 4 years, 6 months
Minister	Loretta Ortiz Ahlf^[14]	24 February 1955 (age 69) in Mexico City	Andrés Manuel López Obrador	92	66	12 December 2021 2 years, 6 months
Minister	Lenia Batres Guadarrama^[15]	6 August 1969 (age 54) in Mexico City	Andrés Manuel López Obrador	Appointed by the president of Mexico	54	14 December 2023 5 months