Syllabus
Lecturers:
Jan Kudrna
Miluše Kindlová
Jan Grinc
Marek Antoš
Ondřej Preuss
Karel Řepa
Organisation and Management of the Course:
JUDr. Jan Kudrna, Ph.D.; e-mail: kudrnaj@prf.cuni.cz
Lectures:
Introductory Information; Roots of the Contemporary Constitutional System of the Czech Republic
Sources of Law in the Czech Republic; International Law and European Law + Parliament and the Legislative procedure
Elections in the Context of Constitutional Law of the Czech Republic
Institutional Protection of Human Rights – the Judiciary and the Public Defender of Rights
Institutional Protection of Human Rights – the Constitutional Court
The President and the Government in the Parliamentary System of the Czech Republic
Freedom of Assembly etc..
Socio-economical rights and their Interpretation by the Constitutional Court .
Fundamental Rights and Freedoms, the Right to Judicial and Other Legal Protection in Charter and in the Decisions of the Constitutional Court
Political Rights in the Czech Republic
Course Goals /Learning Outcomes :
The aim of the course is to gain a basic overview of the framework of the constitutional system of the Czech Republic, both the organs of public power and the separation of powers between them, as well as constitutionally guaranteed rights. All this within the context of European law.
Course Materials:
· The Introduction to the Czech Constitutional Law (a course-book)
· The Constitution of the Czech Republic
· The Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms
· Kieran Williams: A Scorecard for Czech Lustration (in Central Europe Review, Vol. 1, No. 19, available at http://www.ce-review.org/99/19/williams19.html)
· Kudrna, Jan: Dissolution of the Chamber of Deputies in the Czech Republic – the Origin and Essence of Applicable Constitutional Legislation, available at http://bit.ly/rozpousteni
· Kudrna, Jan: Cancellation of early elections by the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic: Beginning of a New Concept of “Protection of Constitutionality”, available at http://bit.ly/cancel-elections
. Kudrna, Jan: The Question of Conducting Direct Elections of the President in the Czech Republic (A Live Issue for Already 20 Years) available at http://bit.ly/direct-president
Final Examination:
The course concludes with a written exam consisting of open-ended questions of varying degrees of difficulty which must be answered briefly but concisely. The exam tests basic, but not detailed, knowledge of the constitutional system of the Czech Republic. Regular attendance at lectures is important.
Means of Communication:
MS Teams
Annotation
The course deals with the fundamental features of the Czech constitutional system. First of all, it analyses the historical roots of the current Czech constitutionalism and studies the position of main constitutional bodies and their mutual relations in the system of government (Parliament, Government, President of the Republic, Constitutional Court etc.).
After this institutional introduction, various aspects of the substantive human rights protection in the Czech Republic are addressed.