—Brian Ray, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, Cleveland State University Arthur Chaskalson, the first President and Chief Justice of the South African Constitutional Court died on December 1, 2012. Many have highlighted the remarkable and courageous role he played in the anti-apartheid movement, including his defense of Nelson Mandela and others during the infamous Rivonia trials. The
The Illusion of the Romanian Constitution?
—Bianca Selejan-Guţan, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Simion Bărnuţiu Faculty of Law On July 29th, 2012, over 8 million Romanian citizens (i.e. over 46% of the electoral records) voted in the referendum organized for the dismissal of the President. More than 87% voted in favor of the dismissal. On August 29th, 2012, some Western powers expressed their satisfaction
Egypt’s Constitutional Crisis is Far from Over
—Jill Goldenziel, Lecturer on Government and Social Studies, Harvard College and Lecturer in Law, Boston University School of Law On Sunday’s episode of the riveting drama, “Constitutional Crisis in Egypt,” the Supreme Constitutional Court postponed its ruling on the legitimacy of the constituent assembly that hurriedly completed a draft of the new Egyptian Constitution. The judges claimed
Constitution-Making in Turkey: Towards a Presidential System?
—Ozan Varol, Assistant Professor, Lewis & Clark Law School Although recent academic and popular commentary on constitution-making has largely focused on the constitutional transitions in progress across the Arab World, I wanted to take this opportunity to update the I•CON community on the constitution-drafting process currently underway in Turkey. In this post, I will provide
Awful Process, Terrible Ending and (Most likely) Disastrous Results
—Andrew Arato, Dorothy Hart Hirshon Professor of Political and Social Theory, The New School No serious interpreter has claimed that the Egyptian constitution-making process has been satisfactory or even adequate. Even in the context of revolutionary populist constitution making to which this case belongs, the Egyptian version is distinguished by its inconsistencies and idiosyncrasies. In revolutions,
Tunisian Constitutionalism and Women’s Rights
—Adrien K. Wing, Bessie Dutton Murray Professor of Law, University of Iowa College of Law The world was in shock and awe in the winter of 2010 when Tunisia, a small North African country, was able to remove its twenty-three-year leader President Zine El Abedine Ben Ali from power in less than a month—and with
Article Review & Response: Mark Tushnet and Oliver Gerstenberg on Rights Adjudication
[Editor’s Note: In this installment of I•CONnect’s Article Review Series, Mark Tushnet reviews Oliver Gerstenberg’s just-published I-CON article on “Negative/Positive Constitutionalism, ‘Fair Balance,” and the Problem of Justiciability.” Professor Gerstenberg then responds to Professor Tushnet’s review.] A Review of Gerstenberg’s article on “Negative/Positive Constitutionalism, ‘Fair Balance,” and the Problem of Justiciability” —Mark Tushnet, William
Article Review: David Landau on Social Rights Enforcement
[Editor’s Note: In this first installment of I•CONnect’s Article Review Series, Brian Ray reviews David Landau’s article on “The Reality of Social Rights Enforcement.” Professor Landau then responds to Professor Ray’s review.] A Review of Landau on Social Rights Enforcement —Brian Ray, Associate Professor, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law David Landau’s recent article The Reality of
Designing Administrative Law: Free Trade vs. Accountability Networks
—Francesca Bignami, Professor of Law, George Washington University Law School In seeking to guarantee market access, international trade regimes generally include not only a substantive component, for instance a commitment to non-discriminatory product safety regulation, but also a procedural component designed to ensure that foreign firms can make themselves heard in the domestic administrative process. In
Canadian Election Administration Goes to Court
—Michael Pal, SJD Candidate and Trudeau Scholar, Faculty of Law, University of Toronto Prior to yesterday’s eagerly anticipated decision in Opitz v. Wrzesnewskyj, 2012 SCC 55 [“Opitz”], the Supreme Court of Canada had not been called upon to resolve a disputed election since 1942, when the Court annulled the result of a federal district election. Opitz clarifies how courts
