Practice question
A complaint seeks enforcement of a constitutional right. The defendant offers only two grounds for dismissal: the text does not list a special writ, and legislators have filed but not enacted a bill providing enforcement procedures. Assume the constitutional language itself supplies a complete judicially manageable rule and contains no condition requiring enabling legislation. Which conclusion is best?
- The pending bill conclusively makes the provision non-self-executing.
- The absence of a named writ always defeats enforcement.
- These grounds alone do not defeat self-execution; the court should apply the sufficiently complete constitutional rule through proper available procedures.
- Only the bill’s authors can enforce the right.
- The right lapses until the next Congress.
Legal references
- Manila Prince Hotel v. GSIS, G.R. No. 122156, February 3, 1997, main decision: https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocs/1/34508
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