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Full-Text Articles in Law

Judicial Review And International Law, Michel Troper May 2003

Judicial Review And International Law, Michel Troper

San Diego International Law Journal

According to common doctrine, the courts, once established, apply the constitution, the principles expressed in the constitution, and also some principles not always expressed but that are thought to be inherent to any legal system, as for example the principle that the State is sovereign. Like the hierarchy of norms, these principles precede the institution of the courts and their jurisprudence, so that they can be used to evaluate them. True, the principles can be vague, but it is considered one of the tasks of constitutional theory to determine their substance before analyzing case law in their light.


From Unwritten To Written: Transformation In The British Common-Law Constitution, David Jenkins Jan 2003

From Unwritten To Written: Transformation In The British Common-Law Constitution, David Jenkins

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article posits that the British Constitution is changing by incorporating written principles that restrain Parliament through judicial review. The Author asserts that this constitutional model has basis in the common law and the orthodox theories of Blackstone and Dicey. In addition, the "ultra vires" doctrine supports the model and provides a basis for judicial review of Parliament. As constitutions may accommodate written and unwritten elements of law, as well as various means of enforcement and change, the Author posits that constitutions are defined by how strongly they reflect underlying legal norms. With a shift in the rule of recognition …