Protection action and effective judicial protection in the Constitution of Ecuador: a critical analysis of its effectiveness, application, and challenges in judicial practice

Abstract

Ecuador, under the model of a constitutional State of rights and justice, has established guarantees such as the protection action to ensure the materialization of rights within the constitutional sphere. However, its frequent use in improper cases, especially those involving matters of mere legality, generates tensions that affect its nature and effective judicial protection. In this context, the objective of this research is to critically analyze the nature, effectiveness, application, and challenges of the protection action, based on a review of its normative evolution, its admissibility limits, and its impact on effective judicial protection. The methodology adopted corresponds to a qualitative approach, supported by analytical-deductive and hermeneutic methods, through the systematic study of normative, doctrinal, and jurisprudential sources. This approach made it possible to comprehensively examine the criteria developed by the Constitutional Court of Ecuador, as well as the main doctrinal positions regarding the use and scope of this jurisdictional guarantee. Among the results, it is determined that the protection action constitutes an appropriate and exceptional mechanism for the protection of fundamental rights, incorporating declarative, reparative, and guarantee-based functions in its decisions. However, its indiscriminate use has generated confusion between constitutional and ordinary justice, leading to legal uncertainty and affecting effective judicial protection. It is concluded that the effectiveness of this guarantee depends on an adequate normative interpretation, the strict delimitation of its admissibility requirements, and the effective enforcement of decisions, with an emphasis on the comprehensive reparation of violated rights.