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Author: Justice Stephen Breyer
Publisher: NYU Press
Published: 2004-06
Total Pages: 328
ISBN-13: 0814799264
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Edited by a Supreme Court Justice, these are essays on the role a judge must play in the legal process across a wide-spectrum of democracies.
Author: Scott E. Lemieux
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2017-11-03
Total Pages: 296
ISBN-13: 1351602128
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →For decades, the question of judicial review’s status in a democratic political system has been adjudicated through the framework of what Alexander Bickel labeled "the counter-majoritarian difficulty." That is, the idea that judicial review is particularly problematic for democracy because it opposes the will of the majority. Judicial Review and Contemporary Democratic Theory begins with an assessment of the empirical and theoretical flaws of this framework, and an account of the ways in which this framework has hindered meaningful investigation into judicial review’s value within a democratic political system. To replace the counter-majoritarian difficulty framework, Scott E. Lemieux and David J. Watkins draw on recent work in democratic theory emphasizing democracy’s opposition to domination and analyses of constitutional court cases in the United States, Canada, and elsewhere to examine judicial review in its institutional and political context. Developing democratic criteria for veto points in a democratic system and comparing them to each other against these criteria, Lemieux and Watkins yield fresh insights into judicial review’s democratic value. This book is essential reading for students of law and courts, judicial politics, legal theory and constitutional law.
Author: Aharon Barak
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: 2009-01-10
Total Pages: 355
ISBN-13: 1400827043
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Whether examining election outcomes, the legal status of terrorism suspects, or if (or how) people can be sentenced to death, a judge in a modern democracy assumes a role that raises some of the most contentious political issues of our day. But do judges even have a role beyond deciding the disputes before them under law? What are the criteria for judging the justices who write opinions for the United States Supreme Court or constitutional courts in other democracies? These are the questions that one of the world's foremost judges and legal theorists, Aharon Barak, poses in this book. In fluent prose, Barak sets forth a powerful vision of the role of the judge. He argues that this role comprises two central elements beyond dispute resolution: bridging the gap between the law and society, and protecting the constitution and democracy. The former involves balancing the need to adapt the law to social change against the need for stability; the latter, judges' ultimate accountability, not to public opinion or to politicians, but to the "internal morality" of democracy. Barak's vigorous support of "purposive interpretation" (interpreting legal texts--for example, statutes and constitutions--in light of their purpose) contrasts sharply with the influential "originalism" advocated by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. As he explores these questions, Barak also traces how supreme courts in major democracies have evolved since World War II, and he guides us through many of his own decisions to show how he has tried to put these principles into action, even under the burden of judging on terrorism.
Author: Kenneth D. Ward
Publisher: SUNY Press
Published: 2006-06-01
Total Pages: 208
ISBN-13: 9780791465561
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Examines recent debates in constitutional theory in light of the work of Alexander Bickel.
Author: Kenneth D. Ward
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Published: 2012-02-01
Total Pages: 206
ISBN-13: 0791482774
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →The role courts should play in American democracy has long been contested, fueling debates among citizens who take an active interest in politics. Alexander Bickel made a significant contribution to these debates with his seminal publication, The Least Dangerous Branch, which framed the problem of defending legitimate judicial authority. This book addresses whether or not the countermajoritarian difficulty outlined in Bickel's work continues to have significance for constitutional theory almost a half-century later. The contributors illustrate how the countermajoritarian difficulty and Bickel's response to it engage prominent theories: the proceduralisms of John Hart Ely and Jeremy Waldron; the republicanisms of Bruce Ackerman and Cass Sunstein; and the originalisms of Raoul Berger, Robert Bork, and Keith Whittington. In so doing, this book provides a useful introduction to recent debates in constitutional theory and also contributes to the broader discussion about the proper role of the courts.
Author: John Agresto
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Published: 2016-10-15
Total Pages: 184
ISBN-13: 1501712918
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →In The Supreme Court and Constitutional Democracy John Agresto traces the development of American judicial power, paying close attention to what he views as the very real threat of judicial supremacy. Agresto examines the role of the judiciary in a democratic society and discusses the proper place of congressional power in constitutional issues. Agresto argues that while the separation of congressional and judicial functions is a fundamental tenet of American government, the present system is not effective in maintaining an appropriate balance of power. He shows that continued judicial expansion, especially into the realm of public policy, might have severe consequences for America's national life and direction, and offers practical recommendations for safeguarding against an increasingly powerful Supreme Court. John Agresto's controversial argument, set in the context of a historical and theoretical inquiry, will be of great interest to scholars and students in political science and law, especially American constitutional law and political theory.
Author: László Sólyom
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
Published: 2000
Total Pages: 444
ISBN-13: 9780472109654
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Describes the decisions of the most innovative of the new constitutional courts in post Soviet Central Europe
Author: Richard Hodder-Williams
Publisher: Bowerdean Publishing Company
Published: 1996-01-01
Total Pages: 134
ISBN-13: 9780906097397
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →The rise to prominence of judges may seem new to Europeans but it is of course not new to the citizens of the United States of America. 150 years ago Alexis de Tocqueville observed that there was scarcely a question which divided the American people that did not end up in the Supreme Court for resolution. Anybody interested in the interplay between the judicial and political functions of a contemporary democracy must take a good look at the United States. This book does just that. It examines how this has taken place over the last half century and asks why it has happened. It discusses the role of men like Lord Denning in Britain or Earl Warren in the United States, who had the strength of character and self-belief to challenge old orthodoxies and help usher in new values and expectations. The shifting balance between the judicial and the political institutions of government is important because it reflects important changes in our political systems. This book is intended to set the debate in a context which is readily comprehensible to any interested and intelligent citizen.
Author: Christine Landfried
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 2019-02-07
Total Pages: 411
ISBN-13: 1108425666
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Explores the relationship between the legitimacy, the efficacy, and the decision-making of national and transnational constitutional courts.
Author: Siri Gloppen
Publisher: Psychology Press
Published: 2004
Total Pages: 228
ISBN-13: 9780714655680
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Introduction : the accountability function of courts in new democracies / Siri Gloppen, Roberto Gargarella, and Elin Skaar Judicial review in developed democracies / Martin Shapiro How some reflections on the United States' experience may inform African efforts to build court systems and the rule of law / Jennifer Widner The constitutional court and control of presidential extraordinary powers in Colombia / Rodrigo Uprimny The politics of judicial review in Chile in the era of domestic transition, 1990-2002 / Javier A. Couso Legitimating transformation : political resource allocation in the South African constitutional court / Theunis Roux The accountability function of courts in Tanzania and Zambia / Siri Gloppen Renegotiating "law and order" : judicial reform and citizen responses in post-war Guatemala / Rachel Sieder Economic reform and judicial governance in Brazil : balancing independence with accountability / Carlos Santiso In search of a democratic justice what courts should not do : Argentina, 1983-2002 / Roberto Gargarella Lessons learned and the way forward / Irwin P. Stotzky.
