You may have to Search all our reviewed books and magazines, click the sign up button below to create a free account.
Constitutions worldwide inevitably have 'invisible' features: they have silences and lacunae, unwritten or conventional underpinnings, and social and political dimensions not apparent to certain observers. This contributed volume will help its wide audience including scholars, students, and practitioners understand the dimensions to contemporary constitutions, and their role in the interpretation, legitimacy and stability of different constitutional systems.
Constitutions are a product of history, but what is the role of history in interpreting and applying constitutional provisions? This volume addresses that question from a comparative perspective, examining different uses of history by courts in constitutional adjudication.
With the increased mobility and interdependence brought on by globalisation, governments can no longer deal effectively with what were traditionally regarded as «domestic issues» unless they cooperate among themselves. International law may once have been a sort of inter-state law concerned mostly with relations between states, but it now looks increasingly inside state borders and has become, to a large degree, a trans-governmental law. While this creates significant challenges even for highly-unified «nation-states», the challenges are even greater for federations in which powers have been divided up between the central government and federated states. What roles should central governm...
This monograph elucidates common legal principles underlying the use of juridical powers. It addresses both public law and private law, and examines both the common law and the civil law. It aims to provide a theory of how Western law regulates the situations in which we hold legal powers, not for ourselves, but for and on behalf of others. It does this by elucidating the justificatory principles that are attracted in those situations. These principles include that other-regarding powers can only properly be used for the purposes for which they were granted; that they should not be used when the holder is in a conflict of self-interest and duty, or a conflict of duty and duty; and that the holder is presumptively accountable for any profits extracted from the other-regarding role. These principles stand behind the detailed legal rules that govern these relationships in multiple legal systems and in multiple public and private settings. In private law this includes the powers of trustees, corporate directors, agents and mandataries; in public law it includes all powers held for public purposes, whether they be held by the Prime Minister, by a police officer, or by a judge.
In this wide-ranging interdisciplinary work, Paul W. Kahn argues that political order is founded not on contract but on sacrifice. Because liberalism is blind to sacrifice, it is unable to explain how the modern state has brought us to both the rule of law and the edge of nuclear annihilation. We can understand this modern condition only by recognizing that any political community, even a liberal one, is bound together by faith, love, and identity. Putting Liberalism in Its Place draws on philosophy, cultural theory, American constitutional law, religious and literary studies, and political psychology to advance political theory. It makes original contributions in all these fields. Not since...
Biodiversity is in accelerated decline and urgent action is needed. In 2020, the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity ended, and none of its Aichi Targets were met. Despite the legally disappointing situation on a global level, the role of national courts in adjudicating climate change litigation is showing potential for effective mitigation and adaptation, and judges have become key actors in linking internationally agreed goals with tangible national commitments to mitigate climate change. Can this pursuit of globally agreed goals at a local level be transposed and lead a similar trend for biodiversity governance? This edited collection gives readers an overview of the shape and reach of biodiv...
Explores how constitutional orders engage with and are shaped by their exteriors.
When the Supreme Court of Canada makes a decision that invalidates a statute, it creates a constitutional moment. But does that have a direct and observable impact on public policy? Constraining the Court explores what happens when a statute involving a significant public policy issue – French language rights in Quebec, supervised consumption sites, abortion, or medical assistance in dying – is declared unconstitutional. James B. Kelly examines the conditions under which Parliament or provincial/territorial legislatures attempt to contain the policy impact of judicial invalidation and engage in non-compliance without invoking the notwithstanding clause. He considers the importance of the issue, the unpopularity of a judicial decision, the limited reach of a negative rights instrument such as the Charter, the context of federalism, and the mixture of public and private action behind any legislative response. While the Supreme Court’s importance cannot be denied, this rigorous analysis convincingly concludes that a judicial decision does not necessarily determine a policy outcome.
The Oxford Handbook of the Canadian Constitution provides an ideal first stop for Canadians and non-Canadians seeking a clear, concise, and authoritative account of Canadian constitutional law. The Handbook is divided into six parts: Constitutional History, Institutions and Constitutional Change, Aboriginal Peoples and the Canadian Constitution, Federalism, Rights and Freedoms, and Constitutional Theory. Readers of this Handbook will discover some of the distinctive features of the Canadian constitution: for example, the importance of Indigenous peoples and legal systems, the long-standing presence of a French-speaking population, French civil law and Quebec, the British constitutional herit...
Does Canada abide by its international agreements?