The Politics of Constitutional Change in Industrial Nations

The Politics of Constitutional Change in Industrial Nations PDF Author: Richard Simeond
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1349069914
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 269

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Book Description
During the last two decades serious attempts to alter basic constitutional structures have taken place in many industrial nations, even in those often thought to have highly stable political institutions. In some cases, such as Belgium and Spain, far-reaching constitutional changes have been put in place; in others advocates of reform have achieved only partial victories or have been entirely frustrated. In all cases, controversy over the constitution has been intense, involving basic conceptions of legitimacy, representation, sovereignty and the purposes of the state. Constitutional politics often reveals much about political life of modern societies that is obscured in day-to-day events. The results of constitutional changes can significantly affect the distribution of power, the ability to manage conflict and the outcomes of policy debates. This book explores the dynamics of constitutional politics through case studies of Spain, Belgium, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, West Germany and Eastern Europe, including Poland, prepared by leading students of these countries. Other chapters draw out the more general patterns of constitutional politics, highlighting the pressures which lead to change, and the formidable obstacles confronting them.

The Politics of Constitutional Change in Industrial Nations

The Politics of Constitutional Change in Industrial Nations PDF Author: Richard Simeond
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1349069914
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 269

Get Book Here

Book Description
During the last two decades serious attempts to alter basic constitutional structures have taken place in many industrial nations, even in those often thought to have highly stable political institutions. In some cases, such as Belgium and Spain, far-reaching constitutional changes have been put in place; in others advocates of reform have achieved only partial victories or have been entirely frustrated. In all cases, controversy over the constitution has been intense, involving basic conceptions of legitimacy, representation, sovereignty and the purposes of the state. Constitutional politics often reveals much about political life of modern societies that is obscured in day-to-day events. The results of constitutional changes can significantly affect the distribution of power, the ability to manage conflict and the outcomes of policy debates. This book explores the dynamics of constitutional politics through case studies of Spain, Belgium, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, West Germany and Eastern Europe, including Poland, prepared by leading students of these countries. Other chapters draw out the more general patterns of constitutional politics, highlighting the pressures which lead to change, and the formidable obstacles confronting them.

Redesigning the State

Redesigning the State PDF Author: Keith G. Banting
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 280

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Book Description


The Politics of Constitutional Change in Industrial Nations

The Politics of Constitutional Change in Industrial Nations PDF Author: Keith G Banting
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description
During the last two decades serious attempts to alter basic constitutional structures have taken place in many industrial nations, even in those often thought to have highly stable political institutions. In some cases, such as Belgium and Spain, far-reaching constitutional changes have been put in place; in others advocates of reform have achieved only partial victories or have been entirely frustrated. In all cases, controversy over the constitution has been intense, involving basic conceptions of legitimacy, representation, sovereignty and the purposes of the state. Constitutional politics often reveals much about political life of modern societies that is obscured in day-to-day events. The results of constitutional changes can significantly affect the distribution of power, the ability to manage conflict and the outcomes of policy debates. This book explores the dynamics of constitutional politics through case studies of Spain, Belgium, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, West Germany and Eastern Europe, including Poland, prepared by leading students of these countries. Other chapters draw out the more general patterns of constitutional politics, highlighting the pressures which lead to change, and the formidable obstacles confronting them.

Constitutional Change in the Contemporary Socialist World

Constitutional Change in the Contemporary Socialist World PDF Author: Ngoc Son Bui
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0192592025
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 385

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Book Description
After the collapse of the Soviet bloc, there are only five socialist or communist countries left in the world – China, Cuba, Laos, North Korea, and Vietnam – which constitute about one-quarter of the world’s population. Yet, there is little scholarship on their constitutions. These countries have seen varying socioeconomic changes in the decades since 1991, which have led in turn to constitutional changes. This book will investigate, from a comparative and interdisciplinary perspective, how and why the constitutional systems in these five countries have changed in the last three decades. The book then breaks the constitutional changes down into four questions: what are the substantive contents of constitutional change, what are the functions, what are the mechanisms, and what are the driving forces? These questions form a framework to process the changes the five countries have gone through, such as making new constitutions, amending current ones, introducing more rights, allowing citizens to engage in changes, enacting legislation, and defining the constitutional authority of the three state branches and their relationship with the Communist Party. While all five countries have adapted their constitutional systems, the degree, mechanisms, and influential factors are not identical and present considerable variations. This book examines and explores these differences and how they developed. Constitutional Change in the Contemporary Socialist World offers a comprehensive and holistic view of an understudied and overlooked area of constitutional law, essential for anyone studying or working in law, politics, or policy.

The Politics of Constitutional Reform in North America

The Politics of Constitutional Reform in North America PDF Author: Rainer-Olaf Schultze
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 366311628X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 367

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Book Description
In October 1999, some fifteen academic experts and government practitio ners from Germany and North America gathered for two days at the Uni ver sity of Augsburg to discuss the topic of "Constitutional Reform and Consti tutional Jurisprudence in Canada and the United States." The present volume documents the results of that conference, a collaborative effort of the De partment of Political Science, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, and the Institute for Canadian Studies, University of Augsburg. In organizing this workshop, we were guided by two basic sets of ideas and assumptions: First, all "established" democracies are regularly confron ted with the need to adjust their constitutional order to changes in their envi ronment lest democratic stability be transformed into rigidity; in many wes tern nations, including Canada and the United States, developments such as the crisis of the Keynesian welfare-state or the emergence of increasingly heterogeneous, postmodern societies have ushered in an era of heightened, yet not always successful constitutional reform activity. Secondly, however, there is no unique path towards, or model of, an "optimal" constitutional order, however defined; rather, constitutional reform processes, their under Iying normative principles and their outcomes are strongly path and context dependent. Therefore, the participants of the workshop and authors of this volume were asked to examine the specific preconditions, context, nature and impact of recent constitutional reform processes in the Uni ted States and Canada.

Research Handbook on the Politics of Constitutional Law

Research Handbook on the Politics of Constitutional Law PDF Author: Mark Tushnet
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN: 1839101644
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 777

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Book Description
This Research Handbook deals with the politics of constitutional law around the world, using both comparative and political analysis, delivering global treatment of the politics of constitutional law across issues, regions and legal systems. Offering an innovative, critical approach to an array of key concepts and topics, this book will be a key resource for legal scholars and political science scholars. Students with interests in law and politics, constitutions, legal theory and public policy will also find this a beneficial companion.

Two Into One

Two Into One PDF Author: Lawrence D Longley
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000009297
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 202

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Book Description
Recent scholarship points to a "new institutionalism" just as recent political developments point to a trend toward democratization. If institutions matter, and if legislatures are the democratic institutions in which the voice of the people speaks, then the organization of legislatures—bi- or unicameral—has important consequences for democracy.

Changing Federal Constitutions

Changing Federal Constitutions PDF Author: Arthur Benz
Publisher: Verlag Barbara Budrich
ISBN: 3866495536
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 420

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Book Description
This book analyses constitutional change in federal and decentralizing countries from a comparative perspective. The authors identify structures, processes and strategies which have proven to favour successful constitutional amendment. Thereby, the book enables public officials, scholars, and students to learn from the constitutional reform experiences of other federal democracies and from practical suggestions how future reforms could be designed. From the Contents: The Relevance of Constitutional Change Constitutional Reform in “Co-operative” Federalism Constitutional Reform in Federal Systems with Divided Societies Devolution and Regionalisation in Federalising States Processes of Ratification Evolution after a Constitutional Reform Conclusion

International Handbook of Human Rights

International Handbook of Human Rights PDF Author: Jack Donnelley
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313045410
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 508

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Book Description
This collection of essays on the current human rights climate in 19 countries includes Canada, Chile, China, Cuba, Israel, Poland, the USA, and USSR, and represents a variety of regimes, cultural traditions, and geographical areas. . . . For analysis of the facts this volume excels. A well-crafted introduction describes current debate about human rights theory and practice, traces the development of human rights instruments, and discusses problems of implementation. Strongly recommended. Library Journal The bulk of the scholarly literature on human rights deals with international law and politics. In contrast, this volume offers nineteen case studies of national human rights practices. Although international factors cannot be ignored, most human rights violations are perpetrated by states against their own citizens; the principal causes of the respect for and violation of human rights lie in national social and political structures.

Citizenship after the Nation State

Citizenship after the Nation State PDF Author: Charlie Jeffery
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1137314990
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 264

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Book Description
Offering an confrontation of the uncritical choice of the 'nation-state' as a unit of analysis in postwar social science, this book utilises specially collected data from 14 regions across five European states to explores how citizens define and pursue collective goals at regional scale as well as at the scale of the 'nation-state'.