La acción extraordinaria de protección: alcance, tutela de derechos y seguridad jurídica en Ecuador.

Abstract

Throughout this essay, the Extraordinary Action of Protection will be analyzed as a Jurisdictional Guarantee for the protection of rights and legal security in the modern Ecuadorian constitution. Since the 2008 Constitution came into effect, this constitutional guarantee has become the only mechanism to review final judicial decisions that in some way violate constitutional rights. However, when we look at its actual application, a real conflict emerges, because, on one hand, there is a risk of it becoming a third instance that evaluates the legitimacy of ordinary judicial procedures, but on the other hand, there are justified concerns about whether we are turning the Constitutional Court into a third instance, given that its limited use can leave citizens without effective protection when their rights have actually been violated.Through the analysis of the current constitutional and legal regulations, as well as the most relevant case law of the Constitutional Court, the essay argues that, as long as the exceptional nature and the admission requirements are respected, the extraordinary action for protection does not compromise legal certainty, but rather strengthens it, by ensuring that the judicial system operates within the limits imposed by the Constitution. Finally, it is important to note that this essay uses a dogmatic and jurisprudential approach, based on the qualitative analysis of the applicable constitutional and legal norms, as well as the most relevant Constitutional Court rulings on the extraordinary action for protection.