The expressive function of constitutional amendment rules
The current scholarly focus on informal constitutional amendment has obscured the continuing relevance of formal amendment rules. In this article, I return our attention to formal amendment in order to show that formal amendment rules—not formal amendments but formal amendment rules themselves—perfo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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2015
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| Online Access: | https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/oaiart?codigo=5840018 |
| Source: | Revista de Investigações Constitucionais, ISSN 2359-5639, Vol. 2, Nº. 1, 2015, pags. 7-64 |
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| Summary: |
The current scholarly focus on informal constitutional amendment has obscured the continuing relevance of formal amendment rules. In this article, I return our attention to formal amendment in order to show that formal amendment rules—not formal amendments but formal amendment rules themselves—perform an underappreciated function: to express constitutional values. Drawing from national constitutions, in particular the Canadian, South African, German, and United States constitutions, I illustrate how constitutional designers may deploy formal amendment rules to create a formal constitutional hierarchy that reflects special political commitments. That formal amendment rules may express constitutional values is both a clarifying and a complicating contribution to their study. This thesis clarifies the study of formal amendment rules by showing that such rules may serve a function that scholars have yet to attribute to them; yet it complicates this study by indicating that the constitutional text alone cannot prove whether the constitutional values expressed in formal amendment rules represent authentic or inauthentic political commitments. |
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