What’s New in Public Law

–Angélique Devaux, Cheuvreux Notaires, Paris, France, Diplômée notaire, LL.M. Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law

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 contact.iconnect@gmail.com. 

Developments in Constitutional Courts

1. Hong Kong’s top court ruled in favor of spousal visa for a British lesbian.
2. France’s Constitutional Court ruled that helping illegal immigrant is constitutional because it falls under the fraternal principle.
3. The Constitutional Court of Moldova declared unconstitutional a law imposing a fixed fine for failure to submit a tax invoice.
4. Germany’s Constitutional Court ruled that law firms that are not organized as a German legal entity and which do not have their main seat in Germany cannot claim constitutional protection against police.
5. Hungary’s Constitutional Court ruled that the Unified Patent Court Agreement (UPCA) is contrary to the Hungarian Constitution.
6. South Africa’s Constitutional Court ruled that all surviving spouses of polygamous marriages under Islamic law are entitled to the benefits of a deceased spouse’s will.
7. Bulgaria Administrative Court has recognized rights of a same-sex couple.
8. The Caribbean Court of Justice declared that the mandatory death penalty in Barbados is unconstitutional.

In the News

1. A Philippine committee completes draft on new constitution.
2. The French Conseil d’Etat takes a position in favor of medically-assisted procreation for all women [Article in French].
3. Ireland is about to hold a referendum about the role of women at home.
4. Poland’s isolation deepens as Supreme Court law takes effect.
5. The European Parliament has rejected a controversial copyright law.
6. The President of the Ivory Coast plans to name a new government.

New Scholarship

1. Ran Hirschl, Opting out of “Global Constitutionalism”, 12 Law & Ethics of Human Rights 1 (2018) (charting the contours of three aversive responses to constitutional convergence–neo-secessionism, nullification, and deference to local authority–and drawing on an array of comparative examples to illustrate the distinct logic and characteristics of each of these responses)
2. Bosko Tripkovic, The Morality of Foreign Law, International Journal of Constitutional Law (forthcoming) (explaining the normative foundations of the use of foreign law in constitutional reasoning)
3. Aurela Anastasi, Reforming the Justice System in the Western Balkans. Constitutional Concerns and Guarantees, Workshop No. 18, of the 10th World Congress of Constitutional Law (IACL-AIDC); 2018 SEOUL 18-22 June 2018 (analyzing the judicial reform process in the region of the Western Balkan)
4. Mohamed Arafa, Islamic Criminal Law: The Divine Criminal Justice System between Lacuna and Possible Routes, 2 Journal of Forensic and Crime Studies 102 (Spring 2018) (discussing challenges to criminal law administration in Islamic states)
5. Sarah C. Haan, The Post-Truth First Amendment, 94 Indiana Law Journal, Forthcoming (arguing that post-truthism presents a constitutional law problem that influence on First Amendment law)

Calls for Papers and Announcements

1. The Faculty of Law in Rijeka issues a call for papers for its 2018 Rijeka Doctoral Conference to be held on 7 December 2018 in Rijeka (Croatia).
2. The Faculty of Law at the University of Trier is looking for a research fellow (Wissenschaftliche(r) Mitarbeiter(in)) at the Chair for Private Law, Private International Law and Comparative Law (Prof. Dr. Jens Kleinschmidt, LL.M. (Berkeley)).
3. The Melbourne Institute of Comparative Constitutional Law (Institute) issues a call for paper to develop the study of comparative constitutional law through exchange between leaders and emerging scholars in the field.
4. The Journal of the Oxford Centre for Socio-Legal Studies (JOxCSLS) is currently calling for papers for Issue 2, 2018 and future issues.
5. The School of Law of Sheffield, United Kingdom issues a call for paper for its workshop on Brexit and The Law School to be held at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies in London, with the support of the ALT, Routledge, SLS and Sheffield Law School. 

Elsewhere Online

1. Editors of the New York Times, If You Could Amend The Constitution, The New York Times
2. John Lloyd, Commentary : In Poland, fighting for the will of the people, Reuters
3. Jean-Philippe Derosier, Constitutionaliser le numérique, Constitutiondecodee.blog.lemonde
4. Steeve Peers, revising EU visa policy, EU law analysis
5. Tomasz Tadeusz Koncewicz, The Polish Counter-Revolution Two and a Half Years Later : Where Are We Today ? Verfassungsblog
6. Benjamin Boudou, The Solidarity Offense in France : Egalité, Fraternité, Solidarité, Verfassungblog
7. Wojciech Sadurski, Polish Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Under Pressure : What Now ?, Verfassungblog