Constitutional Law

...norms accepted by the international community of states as a whole as norms from which no derogation is permitted

...the imposibility has to be manifest and simple practical difficulties or legal problems in implementing a popular initiative do not lead to infeasibility

- Beneficiaries

- Addressee

- Entitlements

- Content

- Sources

- Claims concerning fundamental rights can not be filed against private persons

- Exception: Men and women have the right to equal pay for work of equal value

- Beneficiaries of fundamental rights are natural persons

- Some fundamental rights may be guaranteed to legal persons under private law (except protection of an aspect of human existence); legal persons constituted under public law can invoke a fundamental right only under exceptional circumstances (e.g. they act under private law)

- Fundamental rights create individual entitlements

- Fundamental rights are conceived as directly enforcable rights of the indivuals in courts

- Protect individual freedoms necessary to safeguard human dignity and the development of the essential characteristics of a person

- Categories:

    - Civil liberties

    - Basic procedural rights

    - Equality before the law

    - Basic social rights

- Constitutions on both the federal level and the cantonal level  (Art. 190 important!)

- Various international treaties

- Art. 36 very important!!!

- Restrictions on fundamental rights must have a legal basis

- Restrictions on fundamental rights must be justified in the public interest of by the fundamental rights of others

- Any restrictions on fundamental rights must be proportinate

- Essence of fundamental rights must be respected

- International treaties (conventions)

- International customs (customary international law)

- General prinicple of law

International law and national law are two components of a single body of law (International law prevails over national law)

International law and national law are two independent systems of law, do not operate in the same sphere (international courts apply international law, national courts apply national law)

No need for express adoption by national legislation, a rule of international law becomes automatically binding

Every rule of international law to be expressly adopted by the state. Only part of national legal system if adopted by the state

(a legal person) is an entity that is capable of possessing and exercising rights and duties under international law.

...encompasses all legal provisions enacted in the special enactment procedure of the constitution

...encompasses all essential legal principles concerning the nature of the state and its relation to individuals

Applicable on ordinary statutes on federal level

Only citizen's votes are counted

Amendments to the contitution

Majority of citizen voting, majority of votes in a majority of cantons

-Rules on the organization and powers of the highest state authorities;

-Fundamental rights;

-Procedures applicable for the enactment of the constitution and statutes;

-Competencies of the federal entities in a federal state

-Order and Organization (how the state is constitued)

-Limits of Power and Guarantees of Freedom (delimits the powers of he state)

-Creation and Direction (basic substantive goals of the state)

-Evidence of a continuous, uninterrupted and coherent practice

-"an opinion of law" of the law applying institutions and individuals

-a lacuna in the written law

1. Grammatical Approach

2. Systematic Approach

3. Historic Approach

4. Teleological Approach

5. Pluralism of Methods

6. Interpretation in Conformity with the Consitution

7. Interpretation in Conformity with International Law

Ordniary use of language

Starting point of every interpretation

Systematic context with other legal provisions within the legal text

Estbilsh the meaning of the norm at the time of creation.

Subjective historical analysis: historical intent of the drafters

Objective historical analysis: meaning that was generally attributed to the privision at the time of its enactment

Purpose of a norm

What did the drafters aim to achieve with this specific provision?

Combine all approaches

i. Prinicple of the Rechtsstaat;

ii. Principle of federalism;

iii. Priniciple of democracy;

iv. Principle of social justice.