Presentation made at the National Law Summit held on 30th July at Monarch Imperial Hotel. The participants exceeding 1000 consisted of Ambassadors, Party Secretaries, Lawyers, Professors, Academicians, Members of Parliament and Civil Society Leaders.
Some consider it as one of the most successful improvements on the traditional European, parliament-oriented concepts of democracy and the rule of law.
It exists in about 85 countries around the world. Out of 27 EU nations, 16 have Constitutional Courts. Became popular between 1945-56 in Austria, Germany and Italy. It is used in South Africa, Spain, Indonesia, Thailand and South Korea. Under 1972 Constitution Sri Lanka had a Constitutional Court but many have raised questions whether it was a real court with adjudicative powers.
Jurist and Legal Philosopher Kelson played a key role in setting up in Austria. Federalism remains a key aspect of Austrian constitutional adjudication to this day while the constitutional court continues to serve as an irreplaceable pillar of federalism in the framework of Austrian constitutional law.
