Author: i_conn_admin
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Independent Institutions in Iraq
The Iraq Federal Supreme Court (FSC), following a petition by Prime Minister Maliki’s office, has just ruled that independent commissions such as the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) and the Central Bank of Iraq are to be attached to the executive branch.
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Comparative Originalism
Thank you to Tom for noting my book review! I did want to add one thing: The issue of how the courts of other countries interpret their constitutions is relatively understudied. There is a good book with single-country studies from 2007 edited by Jeffrey Goldsworthy (Monash University, Australia).
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Ambiguities in Iraq’s Constitution
Last week I participated in a fascinating conference hosted by the National Constitution Center and University of Pennsylvania Law School that waded neck deep into Iraqi constitutionalism, and federalism in particular. I argued that among the problems with the federal framework established by the Iraq Constitution is that it is both ambiguous and internally inconsistent…
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Government Formation and Iraq’s Constitution
If reports of a breakthrough in formation of a new Iraqi government are to believed (a questionable proposition), it is worth noting two ways Iraq’s Constitution has been implicated in the unmitigated disaster that has been the failure to form a government almost seven months after Iraq’s parliamentary elections.
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“… far more onerous than the restrictions found in this Nation.”
In McDonald v. Chicago, Justice Stevens stated in dissent that “the experience of other advanced democracies . . . undercuts the notion that an expansive right to keep and bear arms is intrinsic to ordered liberty. Many of these countries place restrictions on the possession, use, and carriage of firearms far more onerous than the…
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The Law and the Social Reality of Other Constitutions
And you thought you knew nothing about the constitution of Morocco? By the time I am done with these posts, you will hardly remember that day. Below, another reflection on reading the constitution of Morocco and then traveling the country of Morocco: The gap between constitutional reality and constitutional text can often be quite profound.
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Political Parties and Comparative Constitutional Law
Another thought inspired by reading the Constitution of Morocco: Bruce Ackerman and others have written in the American context of how our Constitution says nothing about political parties, and the problems that has caused. Even given this, though, reading other constitutions is always enlightening because of the substantial attention it shines on just how much…
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Important Decision from European Court of Human Rights
As noted here, there was an important ruling on extradition-related matters from the European Court of Human Rights on Thursday.
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Free Exercise and State Establishment Redux
I have already received a number of interesting e-mails related to my earlier post, from those writing about religious freedom more generally as well as those who know about Morocco more specifically. Before I turn to the next series of posts, I wanted to address some lingering issues related to my first post: (1) One…
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Summer Travel and Comparative Constitutional Law
When they travel on vacation during the summer, people bring all sorts of things with them—-usually interesting things. They might pack a novel they have long wanted to read. Perhaps, as one of my friends now does, they bring materials with them to help them write a screenplay they have long wanted to compose.