What’s New in Public Law

–Alan Mauricio Jiménez Díaz, PhD. Candidate, Complutense University of Madrid, Spain

–Sumit Kumar Ganguly, Assistant Professor, SGT University, Gurugram, India

In this weekly feature, I-CONnect publishes a curated reading list of developments in public law. “Developments” may include a selection of links to news, high court decisions, new or recent scholarly books and articles, and blog posts from around the public law blogosphere.

To submit relevant developments for our weekly feature on “What’s New in Public Law,” please email iconnecteditors@gmail.com.

Developments in Constitutional Courts

1. The Supreme Court of India is currently hearing a Presidential Reference on whether there can be timelines for the Governors and the President to give assent on Bills passed by the State Legislatures. The reference was made by the President Droupadi Murmu under Article 143(1) of the Indian Constitution challenging the earlier verdict of the Supreme Court which introduced “deemed assent” in case of delay by the Governor and President. 
2. The United Kingdom’s first transgender judge Victoria McCloud has sued her country at the European Court of Human Rights over the Supreme Court’s judgment on biological sex. The UK Supreme Court ruled that transgender women holding gender recognition certificates (GRC) do not come under the legal definition of “woman” under the Equality Act, 2010. Earlier, she sought leave to intervene in the legal proceedings at the Supreme Court but her application was rejected.
3. The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court has struck down the laws of St. Lucia that criminalised consensual same-sex relationships among adults. Two sections of St. Lucia’s colonial-era criminal code had prohibited “buggery” and “gross indecency”. Though rarely enforced, the anti-sodomy law carried a penalty of 10 years imprisonment.
4. The Supreme Court of Fiji is hearing the case on making amendments to the 2013 Constitution. The State has argued in the Supreme Court that certain parts of the Constitution cannot be amended irrespective of the parliamentary or referendum procedure. It is alleged the 2013 Constitution was imposed by the Bainimarama administration which “legalised dictatorship”.
5. The US Supreme Court has refused to temporarily block a Mississippi law that mandates age verification of all users for accessing social media platforms and requires parental consent for minors to use social media. NetChoice, a tech-industry association, had argued that the law violates the First Amendment to the US Constitution. In June, the Supreme Court upheld a Texas law which mandated age verification of adults to access websites with sexually explicit material.
6. The Supreme Court of India has ordered the Election Commission of India to accept the Aadhar Card alongwith 11 other documents for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in the State of Bihar. Aadhar is the unique identity number that can be obtained voluntarily by persons residing in India based on their biometrics and demographic data. The apex court noted that only two objections had been filed in SIR by booth-level agents of political parties.
7. Peru’s Constitutional Court halts probes into President Boluarte until her term ends in July 2026, including inquiries into protester deaths, alleged illicit enrichment, and her absence for cosmetic surgery. Boluarte, who denies all accusations, had challenged the probes as unconstitutional. The ruling, favoring the executive branch, comes amid ongoing political instability in Peru, which has seen six presidents in seven years.

In the News

1. The Central Government in India has introduced the 130th Constitutional Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha (Lower House of the Parliament) which seeks to remove the Prime Minister, Chief Minister, Central Minister and State Minister if they are arrested for serious criminal offences for more than 30 days. The Bill has been sent to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC). Notably, there is also a clause in the Bill for reappointment of the constitutional post holder after the release from custody.   
2. Justice Arif Bulkan of Guyana has been selected to join the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as a judge by the Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission (RJLSC). He has a doctorate in law from the York University in Canada and was admitted to the Bar in 1990. He has published widely and is a co-author of the book ‘Fundamentals of Caribbean Constitutional Law’(1st Edition 2015 and 2nd Edition 2021).
3. Mexico condemned the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling dismissing its lawsuit against gun manufacturers under the PLCAA, which shields companies from liability. The Court found no proof of “aiding and abetting” illegal trafficking, overturning a previous Appeals Court decision. The case returns to the District Court, while a separate 2022 Arizona lawsuit continues. Mexico vowed to keep fighting gun trafficking through legal and diplomatic channels and has raised the issue in UN and Inter-American Human Rights forums.
4. The U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to halt over 1,700 NIH health research grants, citing objections to DEI efforts and “gender ideology extremism.” By a 5-4 vote, the justices lifted a Boston judge’s order restoring the funding, while leaving some lower court rulings on anti-DEI policies intact. The decision is temporary and does not resolve the legality of the cuts, which remain tied up in ongoing litigation.
5. The Supreme Court of India has refused an interim stay on the detention of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants. It is alleged that Bengali-speaking migrant workers from West Bengal are being detained over the suspicion of being Bangladeshi citizens. The    petition filed by the West Bengal Migrant Workers Welfare Board argued that the migrant workers are being arbitrarily detained and deported under a May 2025 circular of the Ministry of Home Affairs under the Central Government.
6. Guinea has launched a digital platform to explain the Draft Constitution in order to expand citizens’ participation in the constitution-making process. A constitutional referendum is scheduled to be held on 21st September, 2025. The platform’s content is available in several national languages besides French and allows submission of questions directly to the legal experts.
7. The House of Representatives in the Philippines has challenged the judgment of the Supreme Court which set aside the impeachment of Vice-President Sara Duterte by filing a Motion of Reconsideration. The Supreme Court held that the impeachment contravened the “one year bar” rule under the Philippine Constitution according to which no impeachment proceedings can be initiated against the same official more than once within a year. However, the court has not absolved Duterte from any of the charges against her.

New Scholarship

1. Francesco Biagi, Constitution-Building After the Arab Spring: A Comparative Perspective, (analyzing post-Arab Spring constitution-making across seven Arab countries, exploring both continuity and change in new constitutional texts. Francesco Biagi examines drafting processes, separation of powers, constitutional justice, and the inclusion of women and religious minorities, assessing how these constitutions aim to shape governance and citizenship. Drawing on extensive field research and comparative frameworks, the book offers a nuanced evaluation of the enforcement of constitutional provisions and the strengthening—or persistence of weaknesses—in constitutionalism in the region.)
2. Yiyang Mei, Michael J Broyde, Reclaiming Constitutional Authority of Algorithmic Power (analyzing the constitutional dimensions of AI governance, arguing that algorithmic systems now exercise public powers requiring legitimate authorization. The article critiques European and American approaches for ignoring structural questions of authority and proposes a framework rooted in early modern Reformed thought, emphasizing participatory delegation, representative power, and a right of resistance. It reframes the legitimacy of algorithmic governance as dependent on constitutional principles rather than technical safeguards.)

Calls for Papers and Announcements

1. Politica y Gobierno (CIDE) and the Mexican election study invite you to submit proposals for a special issue dedicated to the analysis of public opinion in Mexico in the context of the 2024 presidential election. Deadline: August 30, 2025. Submissions must be sent to: david.pena@cide.edu and rodrigo_castrocornejo@uml.edu More information here.
2. LSE Law Review Blog is calling for submissions, accepting articles up to 4000 words on the area of UK, UE or International Law (Outstanding submissions stand to win a cash prize). Articles accepted and published on a rolling basis. More information here.
3. The International Association of Constitutional Law is calling for abstracts, exploring the role of the local leven in protecting and enhancing democracy, human rights and the future of law. Workshops will take place at the World Congress in Bogotá, July 6 to 10, 2026. More information here.
4. The Dr. Ambedkar International Centre in collaboration with the Young Commonwealth Lawyers Association (YCLA) is inviting contributions to mark the 75th anniversary of the Indian Constitution. To honour this historic milestone, legal scholars, practitioners, academics, researchers and students from across the globe are welcome to submit short essays (1200–1500 words). Deadline: 1st September, 2025. Email submissions to: drambedkarinternationalcentre@gmail.com. More information here.
5. Human Rights in the Global South (HRGS) is inviting submissions for its Volume 4 Issue 2. The theme is ‘Rethinking Human Rights in the Era of Climate Crisis, Democratic Decline, and Digital Surveillance’. It is open to doctrinal, empirical, and socio-legal work from any discipline. Interdisciplinary and Global South perspectives are highly encouraged. Deadline: 15th September, 2025. More information here.

Elsewhere Online

1. Petronella Mukaindo & Timothy Fish Hodgson, Constitutional Court of South Africa Affirms Judicial Independence of Military Courts and Judges, Opinio Juris.
2. Jong Eun Lee, The Challenges of Reforming South Korea’s Constitution, East Asia Forum.