The ASUO Constitution Court is the judicial branch of the Associated Students of the University of Oregon. Like the federal government, the ASUO operates under a tripartite system, with coequal legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The Constitution Court is endowed with "supreme and final authority" to interpret the ASUO Constitution, as is the U.S. Supreme Court with regard to the U.S. Constitution.

The Constitution Court decides cases by a majority vote of its members (who are called justices). In most cases, however, the result of a majority vote is not a simple "A wins" or "B wins" proposition. Instead, the Court produces written opinions with a detailed analysis of the facts, a presentation of the law, and an application of the law to the facts. Thus the Court not only resolves disputes among parties, but also, and more importantly, explains and refines the law.

Some of the purposes of this system are:

• to clarify the law and make it easier for members, programs, and officers of the ASUO to act in accordance with it.
• to resolve disputes neutrally through application of the law.
• to help the ASUO "keep house," enuring consistency with our own rules, and to a certain degree, University rules and state and Federal law. The desired net effect is to increase the ASUO's independence and institutional legitimacy.