OVERVIEW

The main subject of the course will be the national system of constitutional justice in its theoretical, dogmatic and professional implications and, more generally, the (broadly speaking) constitutional instruments for the protection of fundamental rights and principles, including those that can be linked to supranational developments in this field.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The Course of Constitutional Law II (progressed) aims to consolidate in the future jurist the categories of the constitutional legality and of the fundamental function of the Constitutional principles for the protection of all subjective legal situations which have been learned in all other teachings. As well as enhancing the knowledge of the form of government and of the institutions, through the study of specialist profiles and the consolidation of fundamental notions of the matter.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The aim of the Constitutional Law II course is to provide students with the knowledge, skills and, in general, the scientific and intellectual tools they need to orient themselves and operate in the most conscious and effective manner in contemporary constitutional systems, in which a role that was unknown until a few decades (or years) ago is played by constitutional justice, in its various forms, and by the “supranational” sources and courts affecting the vast, and virtually unlimited, field of the protection of fundamental rights and principles (susceptible, as such, to take on concrete relevance in any area of law and in any type of dispute).

To this end, an attempt will be made, inter alia, to develop a critical awareness of the historical dimension of the current legal phenomenon, in (and, as it were, through) the relevant disciplinary field, as well as that of its deeper dynamics and development prospects.

Through individual study and even more so through participation in lectures, the student should in particular (to the extent that such abstractions and simplifications are valid):

- understand and learn the main lines of development of modern and contemporary constitutionalism;

- contextualise and interpret the characteristic sources, concepts and institutions of constitutional law of the modern and contemporary age, as they evolve, transform and/or stratify

- grasp the links between legal history and cultural, political and social history;

- know and be able to critically interpret the main sources of law governing the conduct of constitutional justice, as well as the subjects and structure of the system;

- understand and know the functioning mechanisms (including the different possible outcomes, according to the sophisticated decision-making typology developed over the years) of the constitutional process, with awareness of its implications for the protection of fundamental rights and principles and for institutional balances

- understand and know the main features of the supranational systems of protection of fundamental rights and principles, in themselves and in their internal repercussions, first of all at the level of sources and judicial activity (as well as to a certain extent, directly or indirectly, of legislative and administrative activity)

- understand, know and, as far as possible, master (even in the most complex and controversial aspects) the coordination and, in general, the relations between the main national, European and international sources (and courts) in the relevant disciplinary field

- to better understand the wealth of tasks, opportunities and responsibilities of legal practitioners, primarily magistrates and lawyers, in the current multifaceted (and polycentric) regulatory and jurisdictional framework

- know how to understand and critically assess, with independent judgement, any proposals for constitutional revision and institutional reform;

- to be able to critically examine, with independent judgement, regulatory materials, judicial pronouncements of the Constitutional Court and European Courts and scientific articles in the relevant subject area

- improve one's ability to express oneself in appropriate (also) legal language.

PREREQUISITES

General knowledge of the constitutional order in all its parts (1st year programme).

TEACHING METHODS

Teaching will take place through lectures given by the lecturer, exclusively in the classroom (except in the event of a red weather alert, as a consequence of which lectures will be held online), with the support of video projection of slides, for a total of 54 hours (equal to 9 CFU).

Class attendance is strongly recommended and encouraged.

Structured" forms of active student participation may be envisaged (e.g. the presentation of research and in-depth studies on agreed topics), on a voluntary basis and with potential relevance to the final assessment.

Occasionally, scholars, magistrates, professionals or officials with special expertise or working experience on such topics may be invited to speak on certain topics of particular interest and topicality, in order to enable students to acquire a greater awareness of the concrete and applied dimension of the subject and/or its deeper implications.

Any didactic materials to be used - compulsorily or optionally - for the preparation of the final exam and/or the most profitable participation in the lessons will be made available on Aulaweb or in other ways that will be communicated.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

After a brief historical and conceptual reconstruction of the most important developments, including recent ones, in constitutional law, we will focus especially

 - on the subject of sources, with particular regard to the role of supranational sources and the relations between rules adopted at different levels (regional, national, supranational, international)

- on constitutional (and supranational) justice, the roles of the different jurisdictions and their relationships

- on the role of fundamental rights and principles, also with reference to the issues of citizenship and the constitutional “status” of non-citizens.

More in detail, the following topics will be covered (broadly and non-exhaustively) in the course of the lectures.

• The origins of constitutional justice and its various developments; typology of constitutionality review
• Constitutional justice in the Italian constitutional experience: the constitutional foundations and other sources of reference
• The structure and functions of the Court
• The objects and parameters of judgement
• In-depth study of the system of sources (domestic, international and supranational)
• In-depth study of the distinction between provision and norm and its implications
• In-depth study of the different types of norms (with particular attention to the norms on the production of legislation)
• In-depth study of the ways of resolving antinomies and gaps and the role of the various judges
• In-depth study of regional law and main proceedings
• In-depth study of incidental proceedings
• Types and effects of decisions; additive judgments, substitute judgments, interpretative upholding and rejection judgments, etc.
• Cases of particular interest
• Interpretation in conformity with the Constitution, ‘living law’ and the relationship between the Constitutional Court and ordinary judges
• The “multilevel” protection of rights and so-called ‘supranational constitutional justice’. ‘supranational constitutional justice’
• The European Convention on Human Rights and the role of the Strasbourg Court
• The constitutional jurisprudence relating to the ECHR
• The Charter of Fundamental Rights and the role of the Court of Justice
• The constitutional jurisprudence relating to the Charter of Fundamental Rights
• Overview of the current instruments, mechanisms and methods of protection of fundamental rights and principles in the intertwining of national and supranational sources and courts
• Fundamental rights, citizenship, and the constitutional status of non-citizens

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

For all students (attending and non-attending)

The main normative and jurisprudential reference texts are collected (in full or by extract of salient passages) and well systematised for teaching purposes in:

P. Costanzo, Code of Constitutional Justice, Turin, Giappichelli, latest edition

The legal provisions and pronouncements to be taken into consideration are those that will gradually be mentioned in the lesson and/or in the textbooks (or in any other texts used).

For practical reasons (in the course of the lectures, in the study, during the examination and with a view to future consultations), the exclusive use of other media (photocopies, printed pages from the internet, documents in digital format, etc.) is not recommended, with reference to the legal texts and case law in question, even if they can be used in addition (e.g. for easier annotation or for possible additions).

For attending students

The examination programme for attending students (i.e. those who will actually follow the entire course) can be largely customised, within the framework of the following broad indications.
1) In general and first of all, reference must be made to the lecture notes, the slides (which will be uploaded onto AulaWeb) and any other materials (judgments, supplementary readings, etc.) that may be made available or indicated during the course.
2) As regards the part on constitutional justice, reference may be made, in addition, to one of the following textbooks (limited to the parts that will be indicated or agreed upon)
- E. Malfatti, S. Panizza, R. Romboli, Constitutional Justice, Turin, Giappichelli, latest edition
- G. Zagrebelsky and V. Marcenò, Constitutional Justice, II. Objects, proceedings, decisions, Bologna, il Mulino, latest edition
- A. Ruggeri, A. Spadaro, Lineamenti di giustizia costituzionale, Turin, Giappichelli, latest edition
- A. Cerri, Constitutional Justice, Naples, Editoriale Scientifica, latest edition
- S.M. Cicconetti, Lezioni di giustizia costituzionale, Torino, Giappichelli, latest edition
3) Lastly, as regards the part relating to the new supranational dimension of the protection of fundamental rights and principles, and of constitutionalism in general, it will be possible to opt - in addition to the notes and any other teaching materials - for one or more of the following texts (always limited to the parts that will be indicated or agreed upon)
- V. Zagrebelsky, R. Chenal, L. Tomasi, Handbook of Fundamental Rights in Europe, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2022 (or more recent ed.)
- P. Costanzo, L. Mezzetti, A. Ruggeri, Lineamenti di diritto costituzionale dell'Unione europea, Turin, Giappichelli, 2022 (or more recent ed.)
- E. Malfatti, I "livelli" di tutela dei diritti fondamentali nella dimensione europea, Turin, Giappichelli, 2018 (or more recent ed.)
- [ V. Sciarabba, Il ruolo della CEDU tra Corte costituzionale, giudici comuni e Corte europea, Milan, Key Editore, 2019 ]

For non-attending students

The texts for students not attending the entire course are as follows:
1) a textbook of your choice from
- A. Ruggeri, A. Spadaro, Lineamenti di giustizia costituzionale, Turin, Giappichelli, latest edition
- E. Malfatti, S. Panizza, R. Romboli, Giustizia costituzionale, Torino, Giappichelli, latest edition
- G. Zagrebelsky and V. Marcenò, Constitutional Justice, II. Objects, proceedings, decisions, Bologna, il Mulino, latest edition
- A. Cerri, Giustizia costituzionale, Napoli, Editoriale Scientifica, latest edition
2) a text to be chosen among:
- V. Zagrebelsky, R. Chenal, L. Tomasi, Handbook of Fundamental Rights in Europe, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2022 (or more recent edition)
- P. Costanzo, L. Mezzetti, A. Ruggeri, Lineamenti di diritto costituzionale dell'Unione europea, Turin, Giappichelli, 2022 (or more recent edition)
- E. Malfatti, I "livelli" di tutela dei diritti fondamentali nella dimensione europea, Torino, Giappichelli, 2018 (or more recent ed.)
The parts to be studied of the two texts - in their different possible "combinations" of texts - must be agreed with the lecturer.

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The possibility of agreeing with the lecturer on different and “customised” programmes in the presence of particular interests and motivations also remains unaffected for all students.

Important clarifications

A significant differentiation will be ensured between the individual study load of regularly attending students and that of non-regularly attending students.
Regularly attending students will also be able to benefit from the additional concessions indicated elsewhere (e.g. with reference to the exam methods), as well as, first of all, the advantage deriving in itself, especially in a course of this type, from careful participation in lessons (the content of which will largely coincide with what will be required of students in the final interview).
In Aulaweb, or in other ways that will be communicated, any supplementary teaching materials will be made available to be used – on a mandatory or optional basis – for the purposes of preparing for the final exam and/or for a more conscious and profitable participation in lessons.
For intuitive reasons, previous and now outdated editions of the indicated volumes should not be used, nor should other texts or teaching aids not agreed with the teacher (“cheat sheets”, compendiums, summaries, diagrams and various materials available online etc. ... such presumed “supports” are very often adopted by gross and misleading simplifications - therefore counterproductive for the purposes of preparation and the exam - if not by real errors).

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

LESSONS

LESSONS START

Unless otherwise communicated (via AulaWeb and/or other official channels) the course will regularly begin in the first week of lessons of the first semester

Class schedule

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW II

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

The final exam will be oral.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

During the final exam, students will be asked to answer a certain number of questions aimed at verifying the knowledge acquired and the ability to orient themselves in the subject.

Attending students may be given the opportunity to choose, or agree in advance with the teacher, a topic on which to carry out part of the exam.

The greater or lesser number of questions, their greater or lesser specificity, the greater or lesser duration of the exam, the possible interruption of the student's response in order to formulate more specific "sub-questions" or abandon the initial question in favor of a different question will not be considered as signals of the good or bad progress of the exam (much less as attempts to penalize or unduly facilitate the student being questioned), but are simply and exclusively methods to ascertain in the most correct way possible - in any case in the limited time available - the quantity and quality of the knowledge and skills acquired.

The correctness and precision of the presentation, the appropriate use of legal vocabulary and, in particular, the ability to reason critically with regard to the topics studied will also constitute evaluation parameters.

Students in possession of a regular disability certification or DSA diagnosis may request to avail themselves of compensatory measures during the exam tests (e.g. additional time, concept maps, changes in the written/oral mode), following the procedure indicated in the guidelines (p. 5) published here. In any case, for further information, it is possible to contact the Department's contact teacher at the address: Isa.Fanlo@unige.it

FURTHER INFORMATION

Study materials, notices and other updates are published on the AULAWEB page of the course.

For any further information regarding the course, contact the professor.