The Cambridge Companion to Comparative Constitutional Law

Provides a succinct yet wide-ranging companion to a modern comparative constitutional law course.

Roger Masterman (Edited by), Robert Schütze (Edited by)

9781316618172, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 3 October 2019

646 pages, 1 b/w illus. 4 tables
22.8 x 15.3 x 3.5 cm, 0.93 kg

'The essays are well grounded, nicely written, and fair in their legal-political arguments. Together they constitute a good picture of where the world now stands with respect to constitutionalism.' S. N. Katz, Choice

What is the purpose of comparative constitutional law? Comparing constitutions allows us to consider the similarities and differences in forms of government, and the normative philosophies behind constitutional choices. Constitutional comparisons offer 'hermeneutic' help: they enable us to see 'our' own constitution with different eyes and to locate its structural and normative choices by references to alternatives evident in other constitutional orders. This Cambridge Companion presents readers with a succinct yet wide-ranging companion to a modern comparative constitutional law course, offering a wide-ranging yet concise introduction to the subject. Its twenty-two chapters are arranged into five thematic parts: starting with an exploration of the 'theoretical foundations' (Part I) and some important 'historical experiences' (Part II), it moves on to a discussion of the core 'constitutional principles' (Part III) and 'state institutions' (Part IV); finally it analyses forms of 'transnational' constitutionalism (Part V) that have emerged in our 'global' times.

Part I. Theoretical Foundations: 1. Comparative methodologies Ran Hirschl
2. Constitutionalism(s) Robert Schütze
Part II. Historical Experiences: 3. The United Kingdom constitution Mark Elliott
4. French constitutional law Denis Baranger
5. US constitutional law Vicki C. Jackson
6. The constitution of the Republic of India Anashri Pillay
7. The constitution of China Qianfan Zhang
Part III. Constitutional Principles: 8. Democracy Paul Craig
9. Separation of powers Christoph Möllers
10. The rule of law András Sajó
11. Human rights law Conor Gearty
12. Federalism Raffaele Bifulco
Part IV. State Institutions: 13. Parliaments Nicola Lupo
14. Governments Philipp Dann
15. Administration Susan Rose-Ackerman
16. Courts with constitutional jurisdiction Cheryl Saunders
17. Independent fiscal institutions Cal Viney and Thomas Poole
Part V. Transnational Constitutionalism: 18. Multi-layered constitutions Roger Masterman
19. International constitutionalism Jan Klabbers
20. European constitutionalism Kaarlo Tuori
21. A new Commonwealth constitutionalism? Claudia Geiringer
22. Constitutional transplants Gábor Halmai.

Subject Areas: Constitutional & administrative law [LND], Comparative law [LAM], Law [L]