The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) confirmed the validity of the decree, issued in the last six-year term, of the reforms to the Mining Law.
In this Thursday’s session, it confirmed the ruling of a district court that denied protection to a mining company against the Decree that reforms, adds and repeals various provisions of the Mining Law, the National Water Lawthe General Law of Ecological Balance and Environmental Protectionas well as the General Law for the Prevention and Comprehensive Management of Wasteon mining and water concessions, published on May 8, 2023 in it Official Gazette of the Federation.
The Plenary concluded that several of the challenged articles did not directly affect the legal sphere of the complainant or required a specific act of application, so the substantive analysis was not appropriate.
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‘Decree is constitutional’
In other cases, the provisions could not be validated by challenges by the company, as occurred with the approach regarding the lack of consultation with indigenous peoples, as it is a right that can only be claimed by said peoples, or with the alleged invasion of municipal powers, which was not applicable. Likewise, various provisions were controversial out of time, including some regulatory portions that were previously in force.
The SCJN determined that the decree is constitutional, considering that the Congress of the Union It has the power to redefine the regulation of the mining and water sector, and that the concession titles contain regulatory clauses that can be adjusted based on the public interest, without implying a violation of the principle of non-retroactivity or affecting acquired rights.
SCJN attends to another matter
On another issue, the Full Court concluded that the article of the Federal Law for the Prevention and Identification of Operations with Resources of Illicit Originwhich establishes the confidentiality of the identity and personal data of the public servants involved in its application, is constitutional.
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The SCJN determined that the norm protects the principles of legality, legal certainty and adequate defense, because it does not exempt the authorities from establishing and motivating their actions nor does it prevent people from knowing the position of the person acting, questioning their competence or reporting irregularities. In this sense, it was highlighted that identity reservation is a reasonable measure to protect the integrity and safety of the personnel in charge of preventing, identifying, investigating and sanctioning operations with resources of illicit origin and related crimes.
Consequently, the Plenary Court revoked the ruling of the collegiate court that had granted the protection because it considered the challenged article unconstitutional and reserved jurisdiction to continue with the analysis of the legality issues raised in accordance with what was determined by the Court.