The Constitutional Role of the Judiciary if There Were a Codified Constitution

Abstract

The House of Commons Political and Constitutional Reform Committee is undertaking an inquiry into the constitutional role the judiciary would play if the UK were to adopt a written constitution. (This is part of a wider-ranging inquiry concerning the potential codification of the UK's constitution.) I have responded to the call for evidence that the Committee recently issued when announcing its inquiry into the judicial role. My written evidence to the Committee addresses two of the questions raised in the inquiry's terms of reference, concerning the courts’ present role and their potential role under a codified constitution, and the powers that courts might exercise were they to find legislation unconstitutional.

Keywords: constitutional law, public law, judicial, written constitution, codified constitution

JEL Classification: K00, K10, K30, K40