COMPARATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: CONSTITUTIONAL SOLUTIONS TO MODERN PROBLEMS

Level: Undergraduate

Division: The New School for Public Engagement

School: School of Undergraduate Studies

Department: Social Sciences

Course Number: NPOL 3573

Course Format: Lecture

Location: Online

Permission Required: No

Topics:

• Politics
• Law
• Global Studies

Description:
This course provides students with a comparative analysis of how different constitutions around the world have dealt with the most significant and challenging problems of our times. We begin by discussing the U.S. Constitution and how it deals with issues of power sharing between branches of government and individual rights. Our topics include some of the more problematic constitutional issues of our time, including: racial and sexual discrimination, the right to free speech, the right to privacy, and the rights of the accused. We then turn our attention globally and discuss how other societies’ constitutions have dealt with similar issues. Our discussions compare the constitutional texts and examine varying historical contexts and legal and cultural norms that provided the foundation for the various constitutions. Students leave with the knowledge necessary to engage in a detailed examination of significant modern constitutional issues and to discuss the issues in a constructive and comparative manner.