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Argentina: UN expert concerned by appointment of Supreme Court judges by presidential decree

Press releases
Special Procedures

12 March 2025

GENEVA -- An independent human rights expert today expressed concern over Argentinian President Javier Milei's temporary appointment of two Supreme Court justices by presidential decree, bypassing the Senate approval process.

"The Executive is not above the law", said Margaret Satterthwaite, the UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers. "By ignoring judicial appointment processes established in the Constitution and clarified in statute, the President is evading legally-established checks and balances."

"Judicial appointment through presidential decree sets a dangerous precedent by politicising appointments, eroding transparency, and limiting avenues for public scrutiny and contestation," Satterthwaite said.

She warned that security of judicial tenure might be degraded by the temporary nature of appointments by presidential decree.

"Security of tenure is crucial for the protection of judicial independence, allowing judges to exercise their functions free from the threat of losing their position if their decisions do not please other branches of government," the Special Rapporteur said.

With these two appointments, the Supreme Court will now operate with no women justices.

"Such a step back for the country may amount to a violation of the rule of non-retrogression in relation to gender equality norms, sending a very negative message to all women in the country," Satterthwaite said.

In her 2024 report to the Human Rights Council, Satterthwaite warned that improper increase of executive or legislative control over judicial appointments erodes the separation of powers, and undermines the capacity of courts to bolster democratic accountability by ensuring that political branches of government comply with the law and respect human rights.

"Argentina must recommit to its binding international human rights obligations, uphold the independence of the judiciary and respect the rule of law."

The expert is in contact with the Argentine authorities on this matter.

*The expert: Margaret Satterthwaite, Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers.

Special Rapporteurs/Independent Experts/Working Groups are independent human rights experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. Together, these experts are referred to as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. While the UN Human Rights office acts as the secretariat for Special Procedures, the experts serve in their individual capacity and are independent from any government or organization, including OHCHR and the UN. Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the UN or OHCHR.

Country-specific observations and recommendations by the UN human rights mechanisms, including the special procedures, the treaty bodies and the Universal Periodic Review, can be found on the Universal Human Rights Index https://uhri.ohchr.org/en/.