Pluralizing constitutional interpretation: An introduction

Publication Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

2-2023

Abstract

The purpose of the symposium on pluralizing constitutional interpretation was to reflect upon the multiple sites at which interpretative activities take place, their real-world significance, and the methodological implications of expanding our scholarly lens beyond court rulings and beyond legal materials for a more complete understanding of how constitutions are engaged with. In this introductory article, we propose at least three directions for diversification. The first is the pluralization of actors beyond the courts, attention being drawn to the diverse range of institutions, entities, and individuals involved in giving meaning to the constitution. The second is methodological and disciplinary in nature; it addresses the manner in which this plurality of interpreters relates to nonlegal methods and sources, as compared to classic legal methods and sources. The third is about orientation and entails a shift from the study of doctrines, precedents, and conceptional analysis to a more dynamic approach to interpretation, as defined by intersecting viewpoints, coinciding sites of interpretation, and a shifting of institutional and disciplinary boundaries. Taken together, these directions hold out the promise of arriving at a more complete understanding of how constitutional law is engaged with as a lived reality.

Keywords

Pluralizing constitutional interpretation

Discipline

Comparative and Foreign Law | Constitutional Law

Publication

International Journal of Constitutional Law

Volume

20

Issue

5

First Page

1874

Last Page

1883

ISSN

1474-2640

Identifier

10.1093/icon/moac113

Publisher

Oxford University Press (OUP): Policy E - Oxford Open Option D

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.1093/icon/moac113

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