– Wilson Seraine da Silva Neto, PhD Candidate in Law & Economics at the Faculty of Law, University of Lisbon; Assistant Professor at the University of Coimbra.
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
- Vitesse football club will retain its license to compete in professional football after the Supreme Court of the Netherlands dismissed the KNVB football association’s cassation appeal. In expedited proceedings, the court determined that the KNVB was wrong to revoke the Arnhem club’s professional license without conditions. As a result, Vitesse regained its license and was able to return to play in the Eerste Divisie.
- South Korea’s Supreme Court confirmed a lower court’s decision to sentence a man to 15 years in prison for killing his father, who suffered from dementia. The attack occurred after the man became angry, believing his father had insulted him.
- Bulgaria’s Constitutional Court has initiated proceedings to assess whether the system used to distribute quotas within the Central Election Commission (CEC) complies with the constitution. The case was brought forward by 49 lawmakers from the current National Assembly.
- The Constitutional Court of South Africa has unanimously invalidated major parts of the Refugees Act, finding that asylum seekers and their children must not be denied entry solely on procedural grounds.
- Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes has prohibited presidential hopeful Senator Flavio Bolsonaro from visiting his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, for 90 days, citing a violation of the elder politician’s house arrest conditions.
In the News
- Hungary’s parliament has passed a constitutional amendment removing President Tamás Sulyok from office. Sulyok was widely seen as an ally of former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who lost power in April after 16 years in government.
- Montenegro’s Parliament appointed two new judges to the Constitutional Court, Jelena Ružić and Predrag Krstonijević, nominated by President Jakov Milatović.
- The Hawaii Supreme Court has overturned a 36-year-old rape conviction after determining that expert testimony regarding fiber and hair evidence in the case was flawed. The case will be re-tried.
- The European Court of Justice has endorsed Spain’s amnesty law, finding that it does not violate EU legislation or counterterrorism rules. However, the arrest warrant for Carles Puigdemont will remain in effect until the Constitutional Court rules on his appeal.
- India’s Supreme Court took suo motu notice of a case concerning the high cost of life-saving medicines and the need for swift judicial action in matters related to the right to life.
New Scholarship
- Claudio Cozzi Fucile, Pietro Ferretti, ‘Shaping reform: the role of experts in the constitutional revision process. The case of Italy‘ 79(3) Parliamentary Affairs (2026) (This article explores the contribution of experts to the constitutional revision process, focusing on the original reform proposals, the views expressed during informal hearings, and the final text adopted by the Senate.)
- Jaemin Shim, ‘Media coverage of feminine policy issues and electoral consequences: an analysis of mixed electoral system‘ 79(3) Parliamentary Affairs (2026) (This study investigates the electoral impact of media coverage of legislators, particularly in connection with policy areas often considered feminine, such as environmental protection, social welfare, education, and minority rights. It draws on 16,831 manually coded newspaper articles published between 2005 and 2020 that portray elected representatives in Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan.)
- Katalin Kelemen, Maija Dahlberg, Åsa Elmerot, et al, ‘Constitutional reasoning in the Nordic supreme courts: A comparative empirical analysis‘ International Journal of Constitutional Law (2026) (This article offers the first cross-national empirical analysis of constitutional reasoning across the Nordic countries, i.e. Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. It places Nordic judicial practices within a broader global comparative perspective, emphasising both common regional characteristics and significant differences).
- Kai Möller, ‘Liberty and personal responsibility in Dworkin’s theory of rights‘ International Journal of Constitutional Law (2026) (This article examines the notions of liberty and individual responsibility in Dworkin’s later theory of rights. It argues that, from a moral and philosophical standpoint, his account of liberty is somewhat lacking.)
- Adnan Perwez, American Enigma: The Perpetual Nebulousness of Muslims in US Law and the Challenges, Failings, and Opportunities of a Race–Religion Conceptualization Oxford Journal of Law and Religion (2026) (This article challenges and builds on the current literature by reconceptualizing Muslim Americans as occupying a “third position” within the U.S. legal landscape, one that is neither fully defined as a religious group nor entirely as a racialized category, but instead lies between the two, and then examining the wider implications that follow from this perspective).
- Thirty-five years of the Colombian Constitutional Court : Origins, Institutional Design and Impact on Constitutional Democracy (Paola Andrea Mosquera Meneses, et al, eds, Universidad Externado de Colombia, 2026) (A volume commemorating the establishment of the Colombian Constitutional Court, with contributions from a wide range of scholars, providing an overview of the court’s design, composition, jurisdiction and procedures, as well as examining its impact, nationally and internationally).
Call for Papers and Announcements
- The Behavioural Insights for Policy (BiP) Network invites submission of Abstracts to the conference “Behavioural Insights for Policy Portugal” to be held at the Faculty of Law, University of Lisbon, on 08 October. The submission deadline is 15 August 2026.
- The University of Coimbra Institute for Legal Research invites attendance at a conference titled “Democracy Under Pressure: Causes, Impacts and Responses to the Democratic Crisis in Southern Europe”, to be held on 15 September 2026. The event will take place in a hybrid format, allowing for both in-person and online participation.
- The University of Coimbra Institute for Legal Research invites submissions to the first seminar in a Seminar Series on Vulnerabilities and Law, dedicated to the topic “Legal Challenges of Vulnerabilities in Contemporary Migration Scenarios,” which will take place on 21 and 22 October 2026. The paper submission deadline is 05 September 2026.
- The Maastricht Centre for Law & Jurisprudence invites submissions for a conference on “ECtHR jurisprudence: an incremental and progressive development or time to take a breather?” which will take place on 14 and 15 January 2027, at the Faculty of Law of Maastricht University. The deadline for submissions is 16 October 2026.
- The Comparative Constitutional Studies Journal has launched a special Call for Papers to be submitted for its next issue, volume 5.1 (2027). The deadline for submissions is 1 September 2026.
- The Comparative Constitutional Law and Administrative Law Journal (CALJ) has launched a call for papers for its upcoming volume. The submission deadline is 25 July 2026.
Elsewhere Online
- André Glitz, Chatrie v. United Sates (2026) e a constitucionalidade da investigação criminal digital no Brasil e nos USA, UlyssesBlog (3 July 2026)
- Parul Kumar, Chris Hilson, Heatwaves and Legal Remedies: Lessons for Adaptation-Focussed Climate Litigation in Europe, VerfassungsBlog (13 July 2026)
- Erwin Chemerinsky, The biggest Supreme Court surprises this term, SCOTUSBlog (14 July 2026)
- Paul Ford, Code Is Free Speech. Seriously., The New York Times (13 July 2026)
- Sami Abdelhalim Saeed, Alemayehu Fentaw Weldemariam, Unconstitutional Change After Constitutional Breakdown: Coups and the Crisis of Legitimacy in the African Union, IACL-AIDC Blog (23 June 2026)