What’s New in Public Law

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—Surbhi Karwa, PhD Candidate, UNSW, Sydney

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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. 62 written comments have been filed in the advisory proceedings on the obligations of states regarding climate change.
2. A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court of India has initiated suo motu proceedings in the case concerning the rape and murder of a doctor in the Indian city of Kolkata. The case has led to massive protests across India.
3. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in the US paves the way for a class action lawsuit against Google for misleading users about data collection on the Chrome browser. The court stuck down an earlier federal district court ruling on the issue.
4. The Supreme Court of Kenya stays the Court of Appeal’s judgment which had declared the Finance Act, 2023 to be unconstitutional.
5. The Constitutional Tribunal in Poland holds that the head of the central bank of the country cannot be probed by the Parliament. It finds the concerned provisions in the State Tribunal Act unconstitutional.
6. The Supreme Court of Pakistan has accepted the Punjab government’s urgent review petition for revisiting the decision in the Mubarak Ahmed Sani case. The earlier decision of the court in the case has invited a sustained campaign against the judiciary and has major implications for the rights of the minority Ahmadiyya community. 

In The News

1. The constitutional amendment process is underway in Lao PDR. Details here.  
2. The Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in Turkey plans to initiate a workshop and a road map in October for a new constitution.
3. Ukraine’s Parliament ratifies the Rome Statute, votes to join the International Criminal Court.
4. Judicial workers and judges in Mexico launch an indefinite and nationwide strike criticizing the proposed judicial reforms, including a proposal to elect judges through popular vote.
5. Protests planned in Indonesia against the House of Representatives’s urgent proposal for a change in election laws. Civil society argues that the proposed changes are intended to undo two pro-democracy and pro-transparency rulings of the constitutional court of the country on the conduct of elections.
6. Challenges continue in Bangladesh as BNP Chairperson and former Prime Minister Khaleeda Zia is acquitted of all pending criminal charges against her and ousted Prime Minister and Awami League leader Sheikh Hasina faces a range of new criminal charges against her.

New Scholarship

1. Becky Batagol, et.al., ‘The Feminist Legislation Project: Re-Writing Laws for Gender-Based Justice’ (looking at law-making and legislation from a feminist perspective)
2. Symposium on Mark Graber’s new book ‘Punish Treason, Reward Loyalty’ is out in the Journal of American Constitutional History.
3. Delia Ferri, et.al., ‘Federalism and the Rights of Persons with Disability: The Implementation of the CPRD in Federal Systems and Its Implications’ (investigating how CPRD is implemented by different federal systems in the world) 
4. Comparative Constitutional Studies Journal’s volume 2 issue 1 is out now.
5. Richard Albert, ‘Decolonial Constitutionalism’ (theorizing decolonial constitutionalism as a modern form of self-determination)
6. Laura Cahillane, Donal K. Coffey, ‘The Centenary of the Irish Free State Constitution’ (edited volume on the role, development, and legacy of the first constitution of Independent Ireland)
7. Margaret Thornton, ‘Advanced Introduction to Feminist Perspectives on Law’ (part of the advanced introduction series on law and gender equality since the nineteenth century)

Calls for Papers and Announcements

1. Call for papers is now open for the Third Graduate Conference on Constitutional Change at the University of Texas. Submit by 2 September 2024.
2. Call for papers is now open for the Global Submit on Constitutionalism at the University of Texas. Submit by 4 November 2024.
3. Applications are open for visiting faculty positions at NLSIU-Bangalore to teach elective seminar courses in November 2024. Submit by 15 September 2024.
4. The Asian Journal of Law and Society invites submissions focused on ‘Law and Punishment in Asia’. Submit abstract by 15 December 2024.
5. Applications are open for international female postdocs at the University of Muenster for the year 2025. Apply by 20 September 2024. 

Elsewhere Online

1. Rudraksha Lakra, Nidhi Jha, ‘Kashmir’s Legal Exceptionalism Reinforced’ (14 August 2024)
2. Arifur Rahman, ‘On the Basis of Backwardness: Quotas, Gender and the Constitution of Bangladesh’ (12 August 2024)
3. Happymon Jacob, ‘The End of South Asia’ (22 July 2024)
4. Kim Lane Scheppele, ‘Inside Orbán’s Plan to Occupy Europe’ (August 2024)
5. Tomáš Madleňák, ‘Fico’s Crackdown on Rule of Law Continues, Corrupt Prosecutor Freed’ (13 August 2024)