Book ReviewsPopular Sovereignty and the Crisis of German Constitutional Law: The Theory and Practice of Weimar Constitutionalism. By Peter C.  Caldwell. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 1997. Pp. xiv+300. $49.95 (cloth); $17.95 (paper).

The controversy surrounding the Second Amendment—“the right of the people to keep and bear arms”—is, to a large extent, historical in nature, redolent of other matters in this country’s legal and constitutional past. But the historical analogies that might support the Amendment’s repeal do not permit easy conclusions. The issue demands that legal historians venture beyond familiar territory to confront unavoidable problems at the intersection of theory and practice and of constitutional law and popular constitutionalism. An interdisciplinary analysis of Lichtman’s Repeal the Second Amendment illuminates the political, legal, and constitutional dimensions—as well as the perils—of undertaking the arduous amending process permitted by Article V of the U.S. Constitution.

Download Full-text

The Mediation Committee of the Bundestag and Bundesrat: A Special Institution of German Constitutional Law

International Journal of Legal Information ◽

10.1017/jli.2016.5 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 44 (1) ◽

pp. 35-42

Author(s):

Claus Koggel

Keyword(s):

Constitutional Law ◽

Political Power ◽

Case Law ◽

Legislative Process ◽

Constitutional Court ◽

Current Case ◽

Basic Law ◽

Federal Constitutional ◽

Legislative Procedure ◽

German Constitutional Law

AbstractThe Mediation Committee of the Bundestag and Bundesrat – is it “one of the most felicitous innovations in our constitutional activities”, “the most positive institution in the entire Basic Law” or, as some critics assert “a substitute and superordinate parliament” or indeed the “mysterious darkroom of the legislative process”? This article seeks to provide answers to these questions. It is however clear that the Mediation Committee has become an important instrument for attaining political compromises in Germany's legislative procedure. The Committee's purpose is to find a balance between the differing opinions of the Bundestag and Bundesrat concerning the content of legislation, and, through political mediation and mutual concessions, to find solutions that are acceptable to both sides. Thanks to this approach, the Mediation Committee has helped save countless important pieces of legislation from failure since it was established over 65 years ago, thus making a vital contribution to ensure the legislative process works efficiently. The lecture will address the Mediation Committee's status and role within the German legislative process. It will explain the composition of this body as well as its most important procedural principles also against the backdrop of current case law from the Federal Constitutional Court. Finally, the lecture will consider how particular constellations of political power impact on the Mediation Committee's work.

Download Full-text

“OBJEKTFORMEL” – EVENTUAL ACTS OF DAMAGE TO HUMAN DIGNITY

Agora International Journal of Juridical Sciences ◽

10.15837/aijjs.v8i4.1595 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 8 (4) ◽

pp. 19-26

Author(s):

Izabela Bratiloveanu

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Human Dignity ◽

Constitutional Law ◽

Categorical Imperative ◽

Constitutional Court ◽

European Court ◽

Federal Constitutional ◽

German Constitutional Law ◽

First Time

The Object formula („Objecktformel”) has been designed and developed in the mid century XX by Günter Dürig, starting from the second formula of Kant's categorical imperative. The Federal Constitutional Court of Germany took the formula and applied it for the first time in the case of the telephone conversations of December 15, 1970. The Object formula („Objecktformel”) was taken from the German constitutional law and applied in the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights.

Download Full-text

The Treatment of Hate Speech in German Constitutional Law (Part II)

German Law Journal ◽

10.1017/s2071832200015728 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 23-44 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Winfried Brugger

Keyword(s):

Constitutional Law ◽

Hate Speech ◽

Constitutional Court ◽

Specific Determination ◽

Federal Constitutional ◽

German Constitutional Law

As pointed out by the Federal Constitutional Court, a specific determination of the appropriateness of hate speech prohibitions can be based only on the circumstances of individual cases. Some particularly prominent cases are now reviewed.

Download Full-text