Procedures
Written federal procedure with amparo for urgent rights protection
Federal civil procedure follows the Código Procesal Civil y Comercial de la Nación, a predominantly written and document-based process with ordinary, summary and executory tracks. The amparo under Article 43 of the Constitution provides an expedited route where a right is threatened and no other adequate remedy exists. Each province has its own procedural code for local matters.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Federal courts; provincial codes govern provincial courts
- Deadline — Answer to an ordinary claim: 15 days
- Deadline — Ordinary appeal: five days to file, then grounds within the set term
- Deadline — Pre-litigation mediation is compulsory for most civil claims before filing
Governing law
- Código Procesal Civil y Comercial de la NaciónLey 17.454
- Ley 16.986 - Acción de Amparo
- Ley 26.589 - Mediación Prejudicial Obligatoria
In practice
Compulsory pre-litigation mediation under Ley 26.589 means most civil disputes must pass through a mediator before a claim can be filed, and proof of a completed mediation is a condition of admissibility. Appeals to the Supreme Court proceed mainly by the recurso extraordinario federal, which is limited to federal constitutional questions and is subject to a certiorari-like screening power.