Abstract

The typical and structural task of the judicial function is adjudicating controversies under the rule of law. Nevertheless, the context in which the function is exercised cannot be immune from the influence of the dynamics of transitions of basic constitutional paradigms. Therefore, a reconstruction of the present judicial function cannot blindly repeat the concept of courts as “the least dangerous branchµ that was accepted at the origins of Western constitutionalism; rather, it has to cope with the contemporary context and deal with issues such as the supremacy of the constitution, or such as the pervasive impact of international and supranational sources of law that provide also a new setting of protection of judicial independence. The judiciary, through its function of interpretation, may also provide an ultimate guaranty against current processes of democratic backsliding.