JURISPRUDENTIAL EXPANSION OF POWERS IN CONSTITUTIONAL COURTS: THE BRAZILIAN SUPREME FEDERAL COURT AND THE COLOMBIAN CONSTITUTIONAL COURT IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

This article examines whether the Brazilian Supreme Federal Court (STF) and the Colombian Constitutional Court (CCC) act strategically to expand their own powers through interpretation. It adopts a deductive methodology, based on bibliographic and jurisprudential sources. The hypothesis is that the hermeneutical methods developed by both courts operate as instruments of jurisdictional self-expansion, enabling them to decide on an increasingly broad range of matters. The analysis of landmark decisions by the STF and the CCC confirms this hypothesis: in both cases, the courts use interpretive techniques to expand the scope of their jurisdiction beyond what constitutional texts expressly authorize.

KEYWORDS: Judicial review. Constitutional interpretation. Decision-making strategies. Constitutional Courts. Constitutional jurisdiction.