The Constitution of Independence
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 7519985 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Peter Oliver (0009-0002-5090-6057, corresponding author), Peter C Oliver |
| Year | 2005 |
| Pages | 367 |
| Publication date | 2005-04-07 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | BOOK |
| Venue | CONSTITUTION OF INDEPENDENCE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF CONSTITUTIONAL THEORY IN AUSTRALIA, CANADA AND NEW ZEALAND. (SOURCE_BOOK) |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198268956.001.0001 |
| OpenAlex | W2494040548 |
| ISBN | 9780198268956 |
| Open Library | OL22620763M |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 5 |
The Constitution of Independence examines how three countries – Australia, Canada and New Zealand – contemplated, achieved, and subsequently explained their constitutional independence. The book argues that assumptions regarding key theoretical concepts – whether explicit as in the case of ‘sovereignty’, or implicit as in the case of ‘legal system’ – had a profound effect on what key actors in each country considered to be constitutionally possible. Eventually, Australia was to substitute popular sovereignty for imperial parliamentary sovereignty, Canada was to emphasize respect for the rule of law, and New Zealand was to posit a disguised revolution. It is often assumed that only pathological constitutional behaviour – revolution, unilateral declarations of independence, and secession – presents interest for constitutional theory. This book demonstrates that apparently good constitutional behaviour, like good health, is also worthy of study. The constitutional experience of these countries reveals that both sovereignty and legal system are apt for more thorough theoretical analysis. In an age of federalism, human rights, and the increasing importance of international law, it is not surprising that the legal version of sovereignty has evolved from an absolute to a relative concept. Furthermore, it is apparent that lawyers use the term ‘legal system’ in two very different ways: first, as a description of the legal norms which are presently active and available in a particular legal order; and secondly, as a theoretical description, particularly relevant to positivist analysis, which serves to link presently-enacted rules with preceding, superior rules in the hierarchy of norms leading back to a first historical constitution and basic norm. The Constitution of Independence completes a constitutional story that was told in earlier instalments by some of the most eminent writers of constitutional law and theory: Jennings, Wade, Wheare, and Marshall. It turns out that the account of how one imperial legal system evolved into multiple legal systems is relevant to understanding the inverse process: how many legal systems evolve into a new legal order such as the European Union. It is also relevant to contemporary debates in the United Kingdom regarding parliamentary sovereignty
Comparative law · Constitution · Federalism · Independence (probability theory · Law and economics · Legal positivism · Norm (philosophy · Philosophy of law · Political science · Politics · Popular sovereignty · Positivism · Sociology · Sovereignty · American Constitutional Law and Politics · Judicial and Constitutional Studies · Law · Mathematics · Multicultural Socio-Legal Studies · Australia · Autonomy · canada · Constitutional law · New zealand · politics and government
| Citations per year | 0.28 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2008 - 2022 (15) |
| Highly cited | No |