Divergence
Two regional courts deciding the same question differently produce two laws in one territory. A ruling on divergence ends that, and binds every court.
Article 200(3): rulings upon divergence bind every court until the law changes or until the Court departs from them by reasoned and published decision in plenary.
How a divergence reaches the Court
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| Two decisions | Regional courts decide the same question of law differently. Either judgment is final in its own case under Article 198(3). |
| An appeal in cassation | A party invokes the divergence as a ground. |
| Examination | The Court states both positions and the reasons given for each. |
| Ruling | The Court states the position that prevails. The ruling binds every court. |
| Publication | The ruling is published with reasons and with the positions it resolves. |
Departing from a ruling
The Court may depart from its own ruling by reasoned and published decision in plenary. A departure is a decision of the whole Court, states its reasons, and is published in the same form as the ruling it displaces.
One departure stands on the register. In 2025 the Court held that a commune could not act under Article 19 against the region containing it. In June 2026 it departed from that ruling in plenary, Article 19(2) naming communes among those with standing without qualification.
Duration of a ruling
A ruling binds until the law changes or until the Court departs from it. A change in the law displaces the ruling without any decision of the Court, because the ruling interpreted the earlier text.
Where a ruling is said to conflict with this Constitution, Article 195 requires a reference to the Constitutional Chamber, and Article 200(4) leaves that question outside the Court entirely.
Effect on cases already decided
A ruling settles the law for the courts. It reopens no case already decided by a final judgment, and the party who lost on the position the Court rejects obtains no rehearing on that ground alone. Article 222(7) operates differently where a right was violated by an incompatible provision, and gives the remedy of Article 43 without awaiting the expiry of the cure period.