Constitutionalism and the Rule of Law: Bridging Idealism and Realism

Rule of law and constitutionalist ideals are understood by many, if not most, as necessary to create a just political order. Defying the traditional division between normative and positive theoretical approaches, this book explores how political reality on the one hand, and constitutional ideals on the other, mutually inform and influence each other. Seventeen chapters from leading international scholars cover a diverse range of topics and case studies to test the hypothesis that the best normative theories, including those regarding the role of constitutions, constitutionalism and the rule of law, conceive of the ideal and the real as mutually regulating.

Part I. Realism and Idealism in Constitutionalism and the Rule of Law: Theory and History: 1. The ideal and the real in the realm of constitutionalism and the rule of law: an introduction Maurice Adams, Ernst Hirsch Ballin and Anne Meuwese; 2. Tempering power Martin Krygier; 3. Between the 'real' and the 'right': explorations along the institutional-constitutional frontier Peter Lindseth; 4. The emergence of the rule of law in western constitutional history: revising traditional narratives Randall Lesaffer and Shavana Musa; Part II. The Rule of Law in Country-Specific Settings: Case Studies in Reconciling Realism and Idealism: 5. Rule of law, democracy and human rights: the paramountcy of moderation Sumit Bisarya and Elliot Bulmer; 6. The need for realism: ideals and practice in Indonesia's constitutional history Adriaan Bedner; 7. Constitutionalism a la Rwandaise Nick Huls; 8. Between promise and practice: constitutionalism in South Africa more than twenty years after the advent of democracy Pierre de Vos; 9. Idealism and realism in Israeli constitutional law Adam Shinar; 10. Idealism and realism in Chinese constitutional theory and practice Feng Lin; 11. Realism and idealism in the Italian constitutional culture Joerg Luther; 12. Constitutional culture in the Netherlands: a sober affair Maurice Adams and Gerhard van der Schyff; 13. Illiberal rule of law? Changing features of Hungarian constitutionalism Gabor Attila Toth; Part III. Transnational Phenomena and International Developments: 14. The EU and the rule of law - naivete of a grand design? Dimitry Kochenov; 15. Constitutional coups in EU law Kim Lane Scheppele; 16. Peer review in the context of constitutionalism and the rule of law Anne Meuwese; 17. Constitutional correlates of the rule of law Tom Ginsburg and Mila Versteeg.