The Indian Supreme Court’s Right to Privacy

/
The Indian Supreme Court’s Right to Privacy

Gautam Bhatia

Towards the end of August, a nine-judge bench of the Indian Supreme Court unanimously held that the right to privacy was a fundamental right under the Indian Constitution. The case arose out of a constitutional challenge to the Indian government’s national biometric identification scheme (commonly known as “Aadhaar”). During the course of arguments, the Attorney-General for India argued that there were two previous decisions of the Court – handed down by benches of eight and six judges – that had held that privacy was not a guaranteed right under the Constitution.

Read More

Symposium: Access to Justice for Socio-Economic Rights — Lessons from the Indian Experience

/
Symposium: Access to Justice for Socio-Economic Rights — Lessons from the Indian Experience

Surya Deva

Professor David Bilchitz in a recent blog considered obstacles concerning access to justice for litigating socio-economic rights in South Africa and potential solutions to overcome these obstacles. He argued that South Africa should (i) empower individuals to enable them to make claims and (ii) expand its current model of dividing labour between courts and other non-judicial institutions to hear cases related to socio-economic rights.

Read More

Slovak Parliament has Abolished Presidential Amnesties: A Brief Outline of the Story. Is there a Happy Ending?

/
Slovak Parliament has Abolished Presidential Amnesties: A Brief Outline of the Story. Is there a Happy Ending?

Marek Domin

The first half of 2017 saw several developments in Slovak constitutional law. Among other things there were three direct constitutional amendments and two fundamental decisions of the Constitutional Court. However, the most important development would undoubtedly be the success of a several years of effort to find legal solution to the problems posed by the so-called Mečiar’s amnesties. In the following post I will briefly summarize this issue, which undoubtedly goes beyond Slovak borders

Read More

Dual citizenship and eligibility to serve as a member of Parliament – the evolving story in Australia

/
Dual citizenship and eligibility to serve as a member of Parliament – the evolving story in Australia

Elisa Arcioni & Helen Irving

A recent drama concerning the citizenship status of seven members of the Australian Parliament has drawn attention to the complex legal landscape surrounding multiple nationality, as well as the specific meaning of a provision of the Australian Constitution that governs eligibility to stand for, or serve in, the Australian Parliament. 

Read More