96314 - PRINCIPLES OF PUBLIC LAW

Learning outcomes

The Course aims to provide a general knowledge of the fundamental legal standards related to the contemporary Public Law under the national and European legal frameworks. Consequently, Students are expected to get insides and skills on the following: Legal Systems. Common and Civil Law. National and Supranational Sources of Law. Interpreting Legal Standards. National and Supranational Institutions. State's Powers and Bodies. Law-making and Rule-making. Soft Law and Intangible Standards. Public Power. Government, Agencies and Authorities (NRAs, etc.). Adjudication. Orders and Sanctions. Judiciary and Remedies. Case-Law Methodology will drive the discussion over the Course's subjects and issues.[Public Law and Private Law will be taught in close integration]

Course contents

I. Introductive issues.

Legal system: the constitutive elements. Law order. Binding and non-binding rules. The rule of law. Public Law.

Common Law and Civil Law. Stare decisis and Courts role.

State: the constitutive elements of State (community, territory, sovereignty).

Political Form (Form of State) and Political Regime (Form of Gorvenment). Democratic or Pluralistic State. Totalitarian and Authoritarian States. Socialist State. Unitary, Federal and Regional State.

National and supra-national legal systems. Focus on the EU legal system

II. Sources of law.

Sources of law. Definitions. Sources of production and sources on the production. Formal and informal sources of law. The ongoing change in the legal order: soft law and informal measures.

Source of production: act sources; fact sources; direct and indirect sources; intra-ordinem and extra-ordinem sources.

Constitution and constitutional sources. Laws amending the Constitution; other constitutional acts. Constitutional conventions and constitutional customaries.

International sources of law. Treaties, Conventions and international customaries.

EU sources of law. The Treaty on European Union. The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TEU-TFEU). The Charter of fundamental rights of the European Union (2009).

Derived EU sources: Regulations; Directives; Decisions. Other (formally non binding) acts: opinions and advisories; recommendations; guide-lines.

Domestic law. Law of the Parliament. Statute Law. Statutory limits.

Acts having force of law (Legislative Decrees. Law Decrees).

Abrogative referendum.

Regional Laws.

Secondary sources. Executive's Regulations. Regional and local authorities’ regulations.

Fact sources. Customaries.

Sorting the sources of law: chronological principle; hierarchical principle. Competence and specialization principles.

III. Freedoms, fundamental Rights, Human Rights

IV. Organization of the State and constitutional powers: legislative power, executive power and the judiciary

the Head of State

The role of public authorities. the Administrative State. Administrative function and administrative power.

The Constitutional Justice

The Constitutional Court and the constitutional review.

Readings/Bibliography

Giuseppe Franco Ferrari, Introduction to Italian public law, Giuffrè, 3rd ed. 2022.

 

Teaching methods

Teaching methods are academic lessons, promoting dialogue and debate with students. In addition, during the course case law-based lectures will be provided.

Assessment methods

Students will be evaluated through a written test composed by two parts: multiple choice questions and an open question.

Teaching tools

Slide, docs, case law (rulings, etc.), and other case studies (decisions, etc.) will be accessible on "Virtuale" Platform (Dashboard).

Students requiring compensatory measures and/or due to disabilities or Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) should communicate it as soon as possible to the teacher to be addressed to the appropriate office to evaluate and agree on the most suitable measures and tools.

Office hours

See the website of Piergiorgio Novaro