Law chapter 4

Question 1

Liberal rights (first chapter of the constitutions)

Answer 1

Freedom/right of: religion, expression, privacy, life, home, secrecy of communication, property, personal liberty, to be heard by a court, education.

Question 2

Trias politica

Answer 2

Separation of powers or balance of powers, three powers: Legislative power, executive power, judicial power.

Question 3

Judicial review

Answer 3

What can citizens expect from their courts under the rule of law? (independence, impartiality)

Question 4

Legality

Answer 4

Concept of substantive law, legal security, legal equality, nulla poena, prohibition on retroactivity

Question 5

Legality principle

Answer 5

Has the purpose to serve: protection of basic freedoms, legal certainty, equality under the law, democratic self regulation by the people through representatives

Question 6

Nulla poena

Answer 6

Something is only illegal if it is declared illegal

Question 7

Retroactive legislation

Answer 7

Dutch: terugwerkende kracht. The idea is that you cannot make new laws that deem actions done in the past illegal and then press charges.

Question 8

Political rights

Answer 8

Freedom of/to: political views, demonstration (assembly), petitions, forming your own associations (political parties, trade unions, etc). and most importantly the right to vote.

Question 9

Parliamentary system

Answer 9

There are 8 rules, but the most important ones are: the ministers are responsible for acts of the government (ministerial responsibility), ministers or the cabinet of ministers must resign when they explicitly lose the confidence of a majority in the 2nd chamber of parliament (confidence rule), majority rule (ie 50+% votes), and finally the proceedings of the parliament are options to the public (public access).

Question 10

Separation of politics and administration

Answer 10

Differentiation of policy and execution

Question 11

Primacy of politics

Answer 11

Citizens have to obey government orders since they have had influence in selecting the government

Question 12

Administrative neutrality

Answer 12

The administration should not influence the political process. It should also be neutral towards citizens and organisations. This means: authorities must follow the law, the must act in public, pursue a balance between all interests, promote legal certainty and equality, and observe procedural fairness.

Question 13

Social rights

Answer 13

Right to: work, be entitled to social security benefits, live in a clean environment, health, housing, social, cultural development, leisure activities, education and receive financial support to make education feasible

Question 14

Good governance

Answer 14

Principles of good governance: careful preparation, fair play (citizens are treated with prejudice), prohibition of wrongful use of procedural options, correct motivation, formal legal certainty

Question 15

Summarize the foundations (ie the house image in the book)

Answer 15

18th century (liberal): liberal rights, trias politica, judicial review and legality. 19th century (democratic): political rights, parliamentary system, separation of politics and administration. 20th century (social): social rights, good governance. Remember, the ‘rechtsstaat’ is always under development