Constitutionalism and the Rule of Law: Bridging Idealism and Realism

by Maurice Adams, Anne Meuwese, Ernst Hirsch Ballin

Overview

Rule of law and constitutionalist ideals are understood by many, if not most, as necessary to create a just political order. Defying the traditional division between normative and positive theoretical approaches, this book explores how political reality on the one hand, and constitutional ideals on the other, mutually inform and influence each other. Seventeen chapters from leading international scholars cover a diverse range of topics and case studies to test the hypothesis that the best normative theories, including those regarding the role of constitutions, constitutionalism and the rule of law, conceive of the ideal and the real as mutually regulating.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781316606278
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	06/21/2018
Pages:	558
Product dimensions:	6.02(w) x 9.06(h) x 1.34(d)

About the Author

Maurice Adams is Professor of General Jurisprudence and Professor of Democratic Governance and Rule of Law at the Law School of Universiteit van Tilburg, The Netherlands. His research has a particular focus on comparative law, and on the relation between constitutional law and political theory.

Anne Meuwese is Professor of European and Comparative Public Law at the Law School of Universiteit van Tilburg, The Netherlands. She is co-chair of the ECPR Standing Group on Regulatory Governance. Her work has been published in a number of renowned law journals.

Ernst Hirsch Ballin is Professor of Dutch and European Constitutional Law at Universiteit van Tilburg, The Netherlands and Professor of Human Rights Law at the Universiteit van Amsterdam. Prior to returning to academia in 2011 he was Dutch Minister of Justice (1989–94, 2006–10) and Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Affairs (2010).

Table of Contents

Part I. Realism and Idealism in Constitutionalism and the Rule of Law: Theory and History: 1. The ideal and the real in the realm of constitutionalism and the rule of law: an introduction Maurice Adams, Ernst Hirsch Ballin and Anne Meuwese; 2. Tempering power Martin Krygier; 3. Between the 'real' and the 'right': explorations along the institutional-constitutional frontier Peter Lindseth; 4. The emergence of the rule of law in western constitutional history: revising traditional narratives Randall Lesaffer and Shavana Musa; Part II. The Rule of Law in Country-Specific Settings: Case Studies in Reconciling Realism and Idealism: 5. Rule of law, democracy and human rights: the paramountcy of moderation Sumit Bisarya and Elliot Bulmer; 6. The need for realism: ideals and practice in Indonesia's constitutional history Adriaan Bedner; 7. Constitutionalism á la Rwandaise Nick Huls; 8. Between promise and practice: constitutionalism in South Africa more than twenty years after the advent of democracy Pierre de Vos; 9. Idealism and realism in Israeli constitutional law Adam Shinar; 10. Idealism and realism in Chinese constitutional theory and practice Feng Lin; 11. Realism and idealism in the Italian constitutional culture Jörg Luther; 12. Constitutional culture in the Netherlands: a sober affair Maurice Adams and Gerhard van der Schyff; 13. Illiberal rule of law? Changing features of Hungarian constitutionalism Gábor Attila Tóth; Part III. Transnational Phenomena and International Developments: 14. The EU and the rule of law - naïveté of a grand design? Dimitry Kochenov; 15. Constitutional coups in EU law Kim Lane Scheppele; 16. Peer review in the context of constitutionalism and the rule of law Anne Meuwese; 17. Constitutional correlates of the rule of law Tom Ginsburg and Mila Versteeg.