This series delves into theoretical reflections on constitutions and constitutional law across diverse global contexts. It explores the burgeoning interest in this field through original monographs and curated edited collections. The focus is on advancing new understandings and fostering international discourse within constitutional theory. Readers will gain profound insights into the principles shaping modern constitutional thought.
The concepts and values that underpin traditional constitutionalism are increasingly being challenged by political and economic realities that place substantial power beyond the state. This book gathers leading constitutional theorists to discuss the impact of the growth of transnational governance on the foundational values of constitutionalism.
Food, water, health, housing, and education are fundamental to human freedom and dignity, yet only recently have legal systems begun to secure these fundamental individual interests as rights. This book analyses the transformation of socio-economic rights into constitutional rights, and their impact on public law and constitutional theory.
The use of referendums has significantly increased globally over the past thirty years, particularly for resolving constitutional issues, even in nations with minimal direct democracy traditions. This book is the first by a constitutional theorist to explore the implications of this trend for constitutional democracy in a globalizing context, where traditional notions of sovereignty and constitutional authority are being challenged. It identifies four key constitutional processes involving referendums: the founding of new states, the creation or amendment of constitutions, the establishment of sub-state autonomy in multinational states, and the transfer of powers from European nations to the EU. As a constitutional theory study, it examines the challenges this trend poses not only for specific constitutional frameworks, typically based on representative democracy, but also for constitutional theory as a whole. The primary focus is on the interplay between referendums and democracy, addressing common criticisms from democratic theorists and utilizing civic republican and deliberative democracy theories to assess whether well-designed constitutional referendums can enhance citizen engagement in constitution-making. With referendums now integral to modern constitutionalism, the book seeks to answer how their implementation can be made more democratic amid ongoing constitutional changes.
The powerful private sectors of the world economy remain unconstrained by fundamental constitutional rules, leading to human rights abuses on a massive scale. This book examines how the values of constitutional governance can be applied to the private sphere in the modern world, through a network of constitutional fragments.