ECTS - Constitutionalism and Democracy

Atılım University - ECTS INFORMATION GUIDE

Constitutionalism and Democracy (KMH601) Course Detail

Course Name Course Code Season Lecture Hours Application Hours Lab Hours Credit ECTS
Constitutionalism and Democracy KMH601 3 0 0 3 5
Pre-requisite Course(s)
N/A
Course Language English
Course Type N/A
Course Level Ph.D.
Mode of Delivery
Learning and Teaching Strategies .
Course Coordinator
Course Lecturer(s)
  • Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ozan Ergül
Course Assistants
Course Objectives
Course Learning Outcomes The students who succeeded in this course;
  • Describes the tension between democratic principles and liberal constitutionalism in modern constitutional debate.
  • Analyses the tension between democratic principles and liberal constitutionalism in modern constitutional debate.
  • Has a historical and theoretical understanding of the tension and interdependence between liberal and democratic principles.
  • Knows the different arguments for and against judicial review in modern liberal democracies.
  • Knows different ways to institutionalise judicial review in a democratic system.
Course Content The tension between liberal constitutionalism and popular rule in modern democracies; the tension between democracy and rule of law, the issue about judicial review; why should the citizens delegate the interpretation and application of constitutional laws on politically independent judges; basic principles that justifiy democratic government; is there a standard of correct political decisions independent of the popular will;are the political representatives of the citizens less competent than

Weekly Subjects and Releated Preparation Studies

Week Subjects Preparation
1 A Brief Introduction to Democracy and Constitutionalism ALEXANDER, Larry, (ed.) Constitutionalism. Philosophical Foundations, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2001.
2 The Constitutionalism-Democracy Dilemma ALEXANDER, Larry, (ed.) Constitutionalism. Philosophical Foundations, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2001.
3 Constitutionalism, Rule of Law and Democracy Michel Rosenfeld, “The Rule of Law and the Legitimacy of Constitutional Democracy” (March 2001). Cardozo Law Schoool, Public Law Research Paper No. 36.
4 Constitutionalism, Rule of Law and Democracy Richard Fallon, “The Rule of Law” as a Concept in Constitutional Discourse”, Columbia Law Review, Vol. 97, No. 1, January 1997; Judith N. Shklar, “Political Theory and The Rule of Law,” The Rule of Law: Ideal or Ideology 1, (Allan C. Hutchinson- Patrick Monahan eds. 1987), Frank I. Michelman. “Law’s Republic,” 97 Yale Law Journal (1988).
5 Constitutional Precommitment Samuel Freeman, “Constitutional Democracy and the Legitimacy of Judicial Review,” Law and Philosophy 9, Larry Alexander, “What is the Problem of Judicial Review?”. Australian Journal of Legal Philosophy, May 2006; San Diego Legal Studies paper No. 07-03. SSRN: https: //ssrn.com/abstract=802807
6 Constitutional Precommitment Stephen Holmes, “Precommitment and Paradox of Democracy”, John Elster- Rune Slagstad, ed., Constitutionalism and Democracy (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988), Thomas Paine, “The Rights of man”, The Life and majör Writings of Thomas Paine, ed. Philip Foner (New York, Citadel, 1961), Jeremy Waldron, “Precommitment and Disagreement”, In Larry Alexander (ed.), Constitutionalism: Philosophical Foundations. Cambridge University Press. pp. 271--274 (1998), Jon Elster, Ulysses and The Sirens: Studies in Rationality and Irrationality ( Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984); Jon Elster, Ulysses and the Sirens, Philosophy and Public Affairs 15 (1):82-95 (1986)
7 Majority Rule and Rule of Law Alexander M. Bickel, The Least Dangerous Branch: The Supreme Court at the Bar of Politics. Second ed. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1986; Learned Hand, “Democracy: Its Presumptions and Realities.” The Spirit of Liberty: Papers and Adresses of Learned hand, ed. By Irving Dilliard, 90-102. New York. Alfred a.Knoph, 1960, 1932.
8 Majority Rule and Rule of Law Alexander M. Bickel, The Least Dangerous Branch: The Supreme Court at the Bar of Politics. Second ed. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1986; Learned Hand, “Democracy: Its Presumptions and Realities.” The Spirit of Liberty: Papers and Adresses of Learned hand, ed. By Irving Dilliard, 90-102. New York. Alfred a.Knoph, 1960, 1932.
9 Democracy and Constitutional Review of Legislation John Hart Ely, Democracy and Distrust: A Theory of Judicial Review, (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1980. Michael J. Perry, “What is the Constitution”? (and Other Fundamental Questions), in Constitutionalism: Philosophical Foundations, ed. Larry Alexander (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998).
10 Democracy and Constitutional Review of Legislation Ronald Dworkin, “Constitutionalism and democracy” European Journal of Philosophy 3, no 1 (1995): 2-11.
11 Constitutional Rights and Constitutional Review of Legislation Ronald Dworkin, “Freedom’s Law: The Moral Reading of the American Constitution”. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1996.
12 Constitutional Rights and Constitutional Review Samuel Freeman, “Constitutional Democracy and the Legitimacy of Judicial Review,” Law and Philosophy 9; Jeremy Waldron, “A Right Based Critique of Constitutional Rights,” Oxford Journal of Legal Studies 13 (1993) : 18-51.
13 Arguments against judicial review of legislation Jeremy Waldron, “The Core of The Case against Judicial Review, The Yale Law Journal 115(6):1346 · April 2006, Mark Tushnet, Taking the Constitution away from the Courts. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1999.
14 The Institutions of Judicial Review Mark Tushnet, “Forms of judicial Review as Expressions of Constitutional Patriotism.” Law and Philosophy 22, no. 3-4 (2003): 353-379.
15 Overview and Discussion
16 Exam/Presentation

Sources

Course Book 1. ERGÜL, Ozan, Yeni Kurumsalcı Yaklaşımla Türk Anayasa Mahkemesi ve Demokrasi, Adalet Yaynevi, 2007.
2. RAZ, Joseph, “The rule of law and its virtue”, in The authority of law, Oxford University Press, 1979, p. 208-226.
3. TAMANAHA, Brian Z., On the rule of law. History, politics and Theory, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2004.
4. ALEXANDER, Larry, (ed.) Constitutionalism. Philosophical Foundations, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2001.
5. Ronald Dworkin, Freedom's Law: The Moral Reading of the American Constitution. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press. 1-38

Evaluation System

Requirements Number Percentage of Grade
Attendance/Participation - -
Laboratory - -
Application - -
Field Work - -
Special Course Internship - -
Quizzes/Studio Critics - -
Homework Assignments - -
Presentation 1 30
Project - -
Report - -
Seminar - -
Midterms Exams/Midterms Jury - -
Final Exam/Final Jury 1 70
Toplam 2 100
Percentage of Semester Work
Percentage of Final Work 100
Total 100

Course Category

Core Courses
Major Area Courses X
Supportive Courses
Media and Managment Skills Courses
Transferable Skill Courses

The Relation Between Course Learning Competencies and Program Qualifications

# Program Qualifications / Competencies Level of Contribution
1 2 3 4 5
1 Improves the knowledge of concepts, institutions and methods in the field of Public Law at the level of expertise. X
2 Makes original definitions and qualifications about legal concepts and methods. X
3 To analyze and evaluate the problems of public law relations by using the information obtained, reaches new and original results and thoughts. X
4 Evaluates an existing or a new concept or institution in the field of Public Law with a new thought, approach and method. X
5 Have the ability to understand and process the national and international dimensions of law by following court jurisprudence and practices. X
6 Have the ability to diagnose and solve public law problems. X
7 Gains original perspective in the field of public law. X
8 Has the ability to conduct research in the field of Public Law and to produce an original scientific work. X
9 Gains the ability to make oral and written presentations in accordance with academic and ethical rules. X
10 Establishes an effective communication in defending his / her original views and showing his competence in the field of public law issues. X
11 Has the ability to solve current legal problems within the framework of contemporary legal approaches. X
12 It contributes to the establishment and implementation of legal and academic ethical rules. X
13 It contributes to the establishment of the awareness of law and justice in the society and the process of sustaining it. X
14 Students will have the ability to interact effectively by using strategic decision-making processes in solving problems arising from legal theory and practice and affecting social life. X
15 It contributes to the theory and practice of law by publishing at least one scientific article in the field of Public Law in national or international refereed and / or reputable journals. X

ECTS/Workload Table

Activities Number Duration (Hours) Total Workload
Course Hours (Including Exam Week: 16 x Total Hours) 14 3 42
Laboratory
Application
Special Course Internship
Field Work
Study Hours Out of Class 14 3 42
Presentation/Seminar Prepration
Project
Report
Homework Assignments
Quizzes/Studio Critics
Prepration of Midterm Exams/Midterm Jury 1 15 15
Prepration of Final Exams/Final Jury 1 16 16
Total Workload 115