Spanish Court Suspends Catalan Law on Transition to Independence - Reports

According to El Mundo newspaper, the Constitutional Court of Spain accepted for review a lawsuit of the country’s government against the Catalan law on the transition to independence.

MADRID (Sputnik) — The Constitutional Court of Spain accepted for review a lawsuit of the country’s government against the Catalan law on the transition to independence, approved by the region’s parliament on Thursday, El Mundo newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The law regulated the exit of Catalonia from Spain in case if the voters support the independence of the region on the referendum set for October 1. In such case, the law will enter into force the next day after the referendum and remain in force for half a year, allowing for a new parliament to take over to draft the constitution of an independent Catalonia.

The court accepting the lawsuit means that the bill’s implementation is suspended for at least five months. However, the review of the law in court may be prolonged.

This is the fifth time the Constitutional Court of Spain accepts a government lawsuit filed with regard to the documents adopted by the Catalan authorities ahead of the referendum.

In November 2014, Catalonia held a non-binding referendum on the region’s status, with some 80 percent of the voters supported Catalonia’s independence from Spain. Madrid ruled the vote as unconstitutional.