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Full-Text Articles in Law
The Living Constitution Of Ancient Athens: A Comparative Perspective On The Originalism Debate, Mark J. Sundahl
The Living Constitution Of Ancient Athens: A Comparative Perspective On The Originalism Debate, Mark J. Sundahl
Law Faculty Articles and Essays
This article provides a fresh perspective on the originalism debate by undertaking a comparative study of constitutional interpretation in the United States and ancient Athens. By observing how the ancient Athenians resolved the same interpretational problems that face the Supreme Court today, we are able to gain a better understanding of the issues that drive the originalism debate. The study focuses on Athenian practice in 350 B.C., which falls late in the history of the Athenian democracy, well after the legal system had achieved its final form. Like the United States, Athens had a strong tradition of judicial review and …
Extending The Shadow Of The Law: Using Hybrid Mechanisms To Establish Constitutional Norms In Socioeconomic Rights Cases, Brian E. Ray
Extending The Shadow Of The Law: Using Hybrid Mechanisms To Establish Constitutional Norms In Socioeconomic Rights Cases, Brian E. Ray
Law Faculty Articles and Essays
This Article challenges the general perception that ADR processes cannot develop public law norms. It follows a recent trend in ADR literature that seeks to define a public norm creation role for ADR in part by connecting these processes to other alternative legal and political problem-solving methods. This Article focuses on a recent South African Constitutional Court case, Occupiers of 51 Olivia Road v City of Johannesburg, in which the court interpreted the right to housing in the South African Constitution. The court held that municipalities must develop processes for negotiating - or, in the court's language "engaging" - with …
Policentrism, Political Moblization, And The Promise Of Socioeconomic Rights, Brian E. Ray
Policentrism, Political Moblization, And The Promise Of Socioeconomic Rights, Brian E. Ray
Law Faculty Articles and Essays
There is an active and heated debate over whether socioeconomic rights should be included in modern constitutions because of their supposed "positive" character and the difficult separation-of-powers and institutional-competence concerns such rights raise. The controversy over the nature of socioeconomic rights and whether constitutions should include them is connected to the issue of how to enforce these rights when they are included. The South African Constitutional Court is the leading example of a court dealing with these enforcement issues, and its early decisions have been hailed by many, including Mark Tushnet and Cass Sunstein, as developing a uniquely effective approach …