Publication of the Final Version of the Argentine Legal Digest Has Been Postponed

The Permanent Bicameral Committee of Congress on the Argentine Legal Digest (respectively the “Bicameral Committee” and the “ALD”) in its internal bylaws (“Internal Bylaws”), enacted on November 13, 2014 established that the term for filing queries and observations expires on May 12, 2015.

1. The ALD

On June 16, 2014 Law No. 26,939 was published in the Official Gazette providing the approval of the ALD. The ALD identifies and lists all national laws currently in force, as well as those laws no longer in force along with regulations enacted by supranational or intergovernmental bodies of which Argentina is a member.

Law No. 26,939 establishes that: (i) the laws included in Annex I be declared “in force”; (ii) the laws included in Annex II be declared “no longer in force”; and (iii) the reference to rules approved by supranational or intergovernmental bodies of which Argentina is a member, listed in Annex III, be approved.

All laws included in the ALD are identified with a letter referencing the field  of law to which they correspond: ADM) Administrative Law; ACU) Culture, Science and Technology; AED) Education; ASA) Public Health; ASE) Security; ASO) Social Action and Development; B) Customs; C) Aeronautical - Space; D) Banking, Monetary and Financial; E) Civil; F) Commercial; G) Community; H) Constitutional; I) Communications; J) Diplomatic and Consular; K) Economic; L) Tax M) Industrial; N) Private International Law O) Public International Law; P) Labor; Q) Environment; R) Military; S) Criminal; T) Politic; U) Civil and Commercial Procedure; V) Criminal Procedure; W) Public Provincial and Municipal; X) Natural Resources; Y) Social Security; Z) Transportation and Insurance.

2. Term for submitting queries and observations

Law No. 26,939 established that for a period of one hundred and eighty (180) days after its publication a "term for observations and publicity" would take place, during which the Bicameral Committee would make the content of the ALD public and receive any queries and observations.

According to Law No. 26,339, observations may relate to the framing of a law within a particular category, the consolidation of the text or the current validity of a law included in the DJA.

After this period has lapsed and once the observations have been resolved, Law No. 26,939 provides that the final version of the ALD shall be published in the Official Gazette.

The 180-day term provided in Law No. 26,939 was set to expire on December 13, 2014.

In light of the proximity of this deadline, on November 13, 2014 the Bicameral Committee – as required by Law No. 26,939 – enacted its own Internal Bylaws. There, it was established that the term for submitting queries and observations with the Bicameral Committee would only begin to run from the date when the Internal Bylaws were approved.

Hence, the term for submitting observations has now been extended to May 12, 2015.

3. Comments

The term for observations and publicity provided in Law No. 26,939 may be very useful to detect possible inconsistencies or omissions incurred in the preparation of the ALD.

For this reason, it is recommended that interested sectors take this virtual extension of the 180-day term to make any relevant comments and remarks they may deem proper regarding the ALD so that they can be analyzed by the Bicameral Committee.