The “Rule of Law” and the “Rechtsstaat”: A Historical and Theoretical Approach from a German Perspective
2019, 79, No. 1
Publication date
Publishing model
License type
Field
Discipline
Language of publication
Downloads
PDF 419 KB
Number of views:685
Number of downloads:163
Crossref citations:0
Altmetric score:0
Abstract
The Rule of Law, understood in its most general and original meaning as an absence of arbitrariness in state power, is not merely one legal principle amongst many, but has been the core of law itself in political philosophy since classical Antiquity. Although the Rule of Law has been given substance to in various different ways since the modern era, the Member States of the European Union (EU) have contractually agreed in Article 2 first sentence of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) on a Rule of Law that is an expression of the community of values within the EU. This is now not just politically but legally binding for all EU Member States, regardless of changing political majorities or national legislative acts within the Member States. However, with the recent initiation of proceedings against Poland and Hungary, to investigate the potential “risk of serious breach” of EU values according to Article 7 para. 1 of the TEU, it has become very clear that there is no longer political consensus amongst the governments of the EU Member States with regard to how the principle of the Rule of Law should be given substance to in practice. It will thus be the task of jurisprudence, not of politics, to ascertain how far-reaching the legal obligation with regard to the “value” of the “Rule of Law” on the basis of Article 2 of the TEU is and where – beyond the scope of European Law – the political prerogative for Member States to act in accordance with their own national circumstances begins.
Keywords:
Bibliography
Aristotle, Aristotle in Twenty-Three Volumes. Vol. 21: Politics, with an English translation by H. Rackham, Cambridge, Mass. 1972.
Blasek K., Rule of Law in China. A Comparative Approach, London 2015.
Blauberger M., Europäischer Schutz gegen nationale Demokratiedefizit?, “Leviathan” 2016 issue 44, pp. 280-301.
Böckenförde E. W., Staat, Gesellschaft, Freiheit, Frankfurt am Main 1976.
Bogdandy A. v., How to Protect European Values in the Polish Constitutional Crisis, available on: https://verfassungsblog.de/how-to-protect-european-values-in-the-polish-constitutional-crisis/ (visited February 25, 2019)
Bogdandy A. v., Ioannidis M., Das systemische Defizit. Merkmale, Instrumente und Probleme am Beispiel der Rechtsstaatlichkeit und des neuen Rechtsstaatlichkeitsaufsichtsverfahrens, “Zeitschrift für ausländisches öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht” 2014, issue 74, pp. 283-328.
Bugarič B., Protecting Democracy Inside the EU. One Article 7 TEU and the Hungarian Turn to Authoritarianism, (in:) C. Closa, D. Kochenov (eds.), Reinforcing Rule of Law Oversight in European Union, Cambridge 2016, pp. 82-101.
Calliess C., Europa als Wertegemeinschaft – Integration und Identität durch europäisches Verfassungsrecht?, “Juristenzeitung” 2004, pp. 1033-1045.
Cede F., The Development of the Rule of Law in Russia: Justice, Human Rights and Civil Society, (in:) G. Hinteregger, H.-G. Heinrich (eds.), Russia – Continuity and Change, Wien 2004, pp. 379-398.
Closa C., Kochenov D. (eds.), Reinforcement of the Rule of Law. Oversight in the European Union: Key Options, (in:) W. Schroeder (ed.), Strengthening the Rule of Law in Europe. From Common Concept to Mechanisms of Implementation, Oxford/Portland (Oregon) 2016, pp. 173-196.
Denninger E., „Rechtsstaat“ oder „Rule of law“ – was ist das heute?, (in:) C. Prittwitz et al. (eds.), Festschrift für Klaus Lüdersen. Zum 70. Geburtstag am 2. Mai 2002, Baden-Baden 2002, pp. 41-54.
Dicey A.V., Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution, Reprint of the 10th edition 1959, London 1960.
European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), Rule of Law Checklist. Adopted by the Venice Commission at its 106th Plenary Session (Venice, 11-12 March 2016), Study No. 711/2013, CDL-AD(2016)007.
European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), Opinion No. 833/2015 on amendments to the Act of 25 June on the Constitutional Tribunal of Poland, 11 March 2016, CDL-AD(2016)001.
European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), Poland. Opinion No. 839/2016 on the Act of 15 January 2016 amending the Police Act and certain other Acts, 13 June 2016, CDL-AD(2016)012.
European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), Opinion No. 860/2016 on the Act on the Constitutional Tribunal, 14 October 2016, CDLAD(2016)026.
European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), Poland. Opinion No. 904/2017 on the draft act amending the act of the National Council of the Judiciary, on the draft act amending the act on the Supreme Court, proposed by the President of Poland, and oh the act on the organization of ordinary courts. Adopted by the Venice Commission at its 113th Session (8-9 December 2017), CDLAD(2017)031.
Grote R., Rule of Law, Rechtsstaat and „État de droit”, (in:) C. Starck (ed.), Constitutionalism, Universalism and Democracy – a Comparative Analysis. The German Contribution to the Fifth World Congress of the International Association of Constitutional Law, Baden-Baden 1999, pp. 269-306.
Heintschel von Heinegg W., Rechtsstaatlichkeit in Deutschland, (in:) R. Hofmann, J. Marko, F. Merli, E. Wiederin (eds.), Rechtsstaatlichkeit in Europa, Heidelberg 1996, pp. 107-139.
Hilger C., Rechtsstaatsbegriffe im Dritten Reich. Eine Strukturanalyse, Tübingen 2003.
Hillon C., Overseeing the Rule of Law in the EU. Legal Mandate and Means, (in:) C. Closa, D. Kochenov (eds.), Reinforcing Rule of Law Oversight in European Union, Cambridge 2016, pp. 59-81.
Hofmann R., Die Bindung staatlicher Macht, (in:) R. Hofmann, J. Marko, F. Merli, E. Wiederin (eds.), Rechtsstaatlichkeit in Europa, Heidelberg 1996, pp. 3-29.
Hofmann R., Rechtsstaatsprinzip und Europäisches Gemeinschaftsrecht, (in:) R. Hofmann, J. Marko, F. Merli, E. Wiederin (eds.), Rechtsstaatlichkeit in Europa, Heidelberg 1996, pp. 321-336.
Hofmeister H., Polen als erster Anwendungsfall des neuen „EU Rahmens zur Stärkung des Rechtsstaatsprinzips“, “Deutsches Verwaltungsblatt” 2016, issue 14, pp. 869-875.
Huber P. M., Europäische Verfassungs- und Rechtsstaatlichkeit in Bedrängnis. Zur Entwicklung der Verfassungsgerichtsbarkeit in Europa, “Der Staat” 2017, issue 56, pp. 389-414.
Kant I., Die Metaphysik der Sitten (1797). Complete edition. Volume VIII, Wilhelm Weischedel (ed.), Frankfurt am Main 1977.
Koellreutter O., Der nationalsozialistische Rechtsstaat, (in:) Die Verwaltungs-Akademie. Ein Handbuch für den Beamten im nationalsozialistischen Staat. Band I: Die weltanschaulichen, politischen und staatsrechtlichen Grundlagen des nationalsozialistischen Staates, Berlin 1934, Beitrag 15.
MacCormick D. N., Rechtsstaat und die rule of law, “Juristenzeitung” 1984, pp. 65-70.
Martini S., Die Pluralität von Rule-of-Law-Konzeptionen in Europa und das Prinzip einer europäischen Rule of Law, (in:) M. Kötter, G. Folke-Schuppert (eds.), Normative Pluralität ordnen. Rechtsbegriffe, Normenkollisionen und Rule of Law in Kontexten dies- und jenseits des Staates, Baden-Baden 2009, pp. 303-344.
Mohl R., Die Polizeiwissenschaft nach den Grundsätzen des Rechtsstaates, Tübingen 1832/1833.
Möllers C., L. Schneider, Demokratiesicherung in der Europäischen Union, Tübingen 2018.
Müller F. L., Richterliche Unabhängigkeit und Unparteilichkeit nach Art. 6 EMRK. Anforderungen der Europäischen Menschenrechtskonvention und spezifische Probleme in den östlichen Europaratsstaaten, Berlin 2015.
Müller J.-W., Protecting the Rule of Law (and Democracy!) in the EU. The Idea of a Copenhagen Commission, (in:) C. Closa, D. Kochenov (eds.), Reinforcing Rule of Law Oversight in European Union, Cambridge 2016, pp. 206-224.
Placidus (Petersen) J.W., Litteratur der Staatslehre. Ein Versuch. Erste Abtheilung, Strasburg 1798.
Radbruch G., Unrecht und übergesetzliches Recht (1946), (in:) R. Dreier, S. L. Paulson (eds.), Gustav Radbruch. Rechtsphilosophie. Studienausgabe, Heidelberg 1999, pp. 211-219.
Schroeder W., The European Union and the Rule of Law – State of Affairs and Ways of Strengthening, (in:) W. Schroeder (ed.), Strengthening the Rule of Law in Europe. From Common Concept to Mechanisms of Implementation, Oxford/Portland (Oregon) 2016, pp. 3-34.
Sitek B., Personal Separation of the Legislative and the Executive Powers as Guarantee of Independence of the Judiciary in Poland [Rozdział władzy ustawodawczej od wykonawczej gwarancją niezależności sądownictwa w Polsce], “Journal of Modern Science” 2017, Vol. 34, No. 3, pp. 79-90.
Sobota K., Das Prinzip Rechtsstaat. Verfassungs- und verwaltungsrechtliche Aspekte, Tübingen 1997.
Stahl F. J., Die Philosophie des Rechts. Zweiter Band: Rechts- und Staatslehre auf der Grundlage christlicher Weltanschauung. Zweite Abteilung. Viertes Buch: Die Staatslehre und die Principien des Staatsrechts, 5. Auflage, Tübingen 1878.
Stolleis M., Rechtsstaat, (in:) Handwörterbuch zur deutschen Rechtsgeschichte (HRG) IV, Berlin 1990, columns 367-375.
Sydow G., Parlamentssuprematie und Rule of Law. Britische Verfassungsreformen im Spannungsverhältnis von Westminster Parliament, Common-Law-Gerichten und europäischen Einflüssen, Tübingen 2005.
Tuori K., From Copenhagen to Venice, (in:) C. Closa, D. Kochenov (eds.), Reinforcing Rule of Law Oversight in European Union, Cambridge 2016, pp. 225-246.
Turner K., Rule of Law, (in:) S. N. Katz (ed.), The Oxford International Encyclopedia of Legal History, Oxford 2009, Vol. 5, pp. 164-166.
Ullerich R., Rechtsstaat und Rechtsgemeinschaft im Europarecht. Eine dogmatische und terminologische Untersuchung der europäischen Verträge und der Rechtsprechung des Europäischen Gerichtshofs – Zugleich eine Gegenüberstellung zum Bundesverfassungsrecht, Baden-Baden 2011.
Wittreck F., Die Verwaltung der Dritten Gewalt, Tübingen 2006.