The Courts and the Constitution

Abstract

The role of the courts is in one sense unchanging: it is to resolve matters, especially disputes, brought before them. But the ways in which they carry out that role and some of the principles relevant to it are changing – possibly fundamentally – and greater changes may be in the offing. This article considers aspects of those larger questions. It asks about the role of courts and how they go about their tasks – what matters are taken into account, the weight given to those considerations, by what the courts are bound – and asks how these tasks might change in the future. The author confines his discussion to constitutional matters, specifically disputes about the powers of public agencies, especially when individuals are challenging a particular exercise of power. The author concludes by emphasizing the relevant international context in which the discussion takes place.

Keywords: courts, role of the courts, judiciary, judicial processes, changing judicial role.

JEL Classification: K19, K30, K40