The Supreme Court of Argentina unanimously rejected on Tuesday two lawsuits against the constitutionality of the decree of necessity and urgency (DNU), which modified 300 regulations at a stroke. The ruling is a great boost for Javier Milei.

It gives him the certainty that Justice will not invalidate his core decree but, at most, will sever some parts. The ruling gives it governability at a delicate moment: the ruling party is currently negotiating with the Legislative Branch a second version of its law to scrap the State. The position of the Supreme Court has been questioned by constitutional lawyers such as Andres Gil Domnguez, who believe that it was possible to rule on its entirety. The supreme judges must still rule against other ongoing lawsuits that, unlike those discarded, refer to specific aspects of the DNU and not its entirety, the court said in a statement. The unions stopped the articles of the regulation linked to labor reforms in lower courts. Some private health insurance patients have achieved rulings in favor of the liberalization of the price of these policies authorized by the regulations. The highest court has operated with four members since 2021, when the only woman, Elena Highton, retired. President Milei has nominated the controversial criminal lawyer Ariel Lijo, closer to Supreme Ricardo Lorenzetti than to the three judges already mentioned. If the names are approved by the Senate, which requires a special two-thirds majority, Argentina will be the only country in Latin America without women on its highest court. The DNU has another obstacle to overcome: the Legislative Branch. The Senate rejected it in mid-March, but it has not yet been debated in the Chamber of Deputies. Unless this second chamber rules against it, it will remain valid. Unlike what happens with Justice, which can tear it to pieces, legislators can only approve or reject it in its entirety. The new regulations that came into force with DNU 70/23, the deregulation of the price of private health insurance and private schools, stand out. Most new contracts now range between one and two years, and updates are usually quarterly at most.