04 May 2020
Covid-19 – the Maltese Response: Slow at First but Steady and Effective
Notwithstanding some initial hesitation, the way in which the Maltese health authorities have so far handled the emergency has been well received by the general public. Measures were introduced gradually, with daily press conferences explaining the reason for each new measure or variation thereof, whilst providing statistics on the number of daily swabs, patients infected, patients recovered, and fatalities. Continue reading >>
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04 May 2020
Something is Forgotten in the State of Denmark: Denmark’s Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic
While the Danish Government’s approach, up until this point, has been successful in limiting the spread of the pandemic and none of the government initiatives seem blatantly unconstitutional – something might be forgotten in the state of Denmark: that the resilience and cultural properties of the Danish society contributed to the success in handling COVID-19 rather than increasing executive power. Continue reading >>03 May 2020
Corona Constitutional #19: Wie die Krise in der Verwaltungs- und Verfassungsjustiz aufschlägt
Zweitwohnungsverbot, Ladenöffnung, Versammlungsfreiheit: die Verwaltungs- und Verfassungsgerichte haben in der Coronakrise unter hohem zeitlichen Druck eine enorme Masse an Fällen und Fallkonstellationen zu bewältigen. Wie kommen sie zurecht? Max Steinbeis spricht in der heutigen Folge mit THOMAS SMOLLICH, Präsident des niedersächsischen Oberverwaltungsgerichts und des Staatsgerichtsgerichtshofs von Niedersachsen, unter anderem über die Frage, warum es in Niedersachsen keine Verfassungsbeschwerde gibt. Continue reading >>
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02 May 2020
Auch die Schulpflicht sollte gelockert werden
NRW liebäugelt mit einem "rollierenden System" für den Schulbesuch. Der Ertrag sub specie Bildungserfolg und soziale Interaktion der Kinder erscheinen dabei relativ gering. Bei einem solchen Missverhältnis muss sich die allgemeine Schulpflicht fragen lassen, ob sie ohne Lockerung für besonders gefährdete Personen noch verfassungskonform ist. Continue reading >>02 May 2020
COVID-19 in Latvia: Precaution Above All
The Government of Latvia adopted the decision on emergency situation due to COVID-19 on 12 March to apply until 14 April. For the time being, this period has been extended once to 12 May. This post considers the applicable legal framework, concrete limitations adopted by the Saeima (Parliament) and the Government are described, followed by an assessment from the point of view of European Union values. Continue reading >>
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01 May 2020
The Fight Against COVID-19 in Argentina: Executive vs Legislative Branch
Argentina’s government has been adopting numerous and significant decisions in the face of the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis. But: Almost all the relevant decisions adopted by the Executive Branch were decisions that belonged to the Legislative Branch: Congress is the only authority legally authorized to adopt them. In other words, the Executive Power is not authorized to do what it has been doing so far. Continue reading >>01 May 2020
With Tragedy Comes Farce
The Italian Prime Minister has recently adopted the the so-called ‘Step 2’ measures. They aim to prudently alleviate the severe limitations on personal liberty imposed so far, but result in obvious uncertainty as for what exactly is forbidden – which adds to their slender ties with parliamentary legislation in exposing the legitimacy deficit of the overall crisis discipline. Particularly, the notion of ‘congiunto’ as a person that one can go visit is likely to cause tragicomic, yet remarkable, turmoil. Continue reading >>
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30 April 2020
Orbán is Still the Sole Judge of his Own Law
Our 22 April post on the Verfassungblog about Viktor Orbán’s state of emergency generated a thoughtful reply from Dr. Dániel Karsai, a well-respected Hungarian lawyer. We appreciate the chance to respond to his criticisms, alleging that we made some factual errors about the operation of Hungarian law. Continue reading >>
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30 April 2020
Concentration of Powers in the Federal Executive: The Application of Emergency Powers in Switzerland
Were we ready for the crisis? I do not mean whether Switzerland had enough hospital beds and ventilators, but whether its Federal Constitution was ready. Arguably, the former are vital, and as regards the latter, Switzerland is under no suspicion of losing its quality as a democracy and a Rechtsstaat. Still, the constitutional questions raised by the Corona crisis are troubling. The federal government is applying emergency powers unheard of since WW2, and which were previously unimaginable for most. Legal scholars are only starting to grapple the full implications of the crisis. Continue reading >>
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30 April 2020