Constitutional Specificity, Unwritten Understandings and Constitutional Agreement
CONSTITUTIONAL TOPOGRAPHY: VALUES AND CONSITUTIONS, A. Sajo and R. Uitz, eds., Eleven International Publishing, 2010
30 Pages Posted: 11 Nov 2010 Last revised: 19 Nov 2010
Date Written: November 11, 2010
Abstract
This short book chapter explores the determinants of constitutional specificity. Treating constitutional texts as coordination devices, it predicts that demand for specificity will increase as a function of audience heterogeneity, political uncertainty, and other factors. It shows that constitutions are getting longer and more detailed over time, and that constitutions in common law countries are longer than those in civil law countries, though not necessarily any clearer.
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