Essays on Dicey

Introduction

Parliamentary sovereignty is a system of governance, which denotes that Parliament is the supreme legal authority with the sole capacity to make or end any law. The relationship between Parliament and other arms of government go as far as they do not interfere with or overrule legislations passed by Parliament. The concept of supreme Parliament was discussed by the AV Dicey in his 19th-century book “The Law of the Constitution (1885, p. 39-40).” In his view, Dicey believed that Parliament has unlimited power under the English constitution to make or unmake law in whichever way it deem fit and ...

Whether to rely on Dicey’s doctrine is subjective as there are as many reasons against it just like reasons for. It is a mixture of behavior most likely in line to support the view that, “there is no good without harm”. Whatever the Diceys doctrines hold is as much fundamental to the current constitution. It is therefore important to evaluate the strength of this doctrine in regard to the prevailing circumstances.

AV Dicey just like other scholars like Erskine May played an important role in coming up with British general law. In particular Dicey in his book, An ...

Dicey was an incredibly important figure in the development of the Rule of Law in contemporary Britain. The Rule of Law, in a modern context, has been developed through many different societies; however, the liberal understanding of the role of government and law in British society today is very much the result of Dicey’s philosophical input. Dicey suggested that individuals cannot be punished in any way unless they have committed some sort of transgression against a law that has been established by the rightful government and Courts in the realm. Dicey also suggested that an important characteristic of the Rule ...

One of the cornerstones of the UK Constitution is parliamentary sovereignty. Parliamentary sovereignty makes the UK parliament the supreme legal authority in the country that is charged with the role of creating or ending laws. The parliament sovereignty doctrine has stood for a considerable period in the UK constitution. Although it has managed to stand solidly, some constitutional developments have, however affected this sovereignty. The parliament has itself passed some laws that have limited the application of this principle. These laws have been a reflection of the political developments both within and outside the United Kingdom. The aim of this paper ...

“For the time being and notwithstanding the various challenges to it parliamentary sovereignty remains formally intact as a matter of law.” Discuss the above statement. What is the significance of parliamentary sovereignty to the UK constitution and has the doctrine has been weakened by constitutional changes?

Introduction

The principle of Parliamentary sovereignty is based on the notion that Parliament represents the will of the people. The courts have upheld the view of the sovereignty in the past more than 350 years. The above statement in the title refers to the dilution of the concept of Parliamentary sovereignty with the advent of ...

Introduction

The American democracy stands out as one of the most stable and effective democracies. Since the declaration of Independence by the founding fathers, America has undergone tremendous changes that have seen it through progress. The process has been evolutionary and painful, often buoyed with bloodshed, wars and unending quests for justice. It is this paper’s contention that the democracy of America was influenced by four main theorists whose works continues to determine governance and the system of government. The theorists include Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Baron Montesquieu and A.V. Dicey. This paper would canvass their theories, how they ...

Introduction

The standard theory of Parliamentary Sovereignty set out by AV Dicey in An Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution has often been referred to as the ‘orthodox’ theory of Parliamentary Sovereignty, and taught to generations of law students ever since the 19th Century. Dicey’s proposal was later regarded as the ‘basic principle’ of the British constitution: that a statute is to be taken as being the highest form of law within the British constitutional structure (Loveland, 2006, 23). Therefore, this implied that the British Parliament alone, is the sovereign lawmaker in the country, and no ...

Judicial Independence

The concept of judicial independence is recognized by almost all constitutions of the world and the basic reason behind judicial independence is to keep the judiciary liberated from every kind of influences by executive, legislative or any other force. The Chief Justice of Canada in a recent judgment explained the importance of judicial independence:"Judicial independence is valued, because it serves important societal goals - it is a means to secure those goals. One of these goals is the maintenance of public confidence in the impartiality of the judiciary, which is essential to the effectiveness of the court system. Independence contributes ...