Ebook: The Constitution of Czechia: A Contextual Analysis

Czechia is an outlier in Central Europe, as it has not witnessed significant democratic backsliding since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Still, it is a fragile democracy that is in the state of democratic careening. The democratic game has changed in decisive ways since the creation of Czechia in 1993, but the Czech democracy neither collapsed nor became more firmly consolidated in the process. This book examines why through the lenses of sociological constitutionalism. It explores not only the Czech pluralist constitution, key constitutional principles, the interaction between the legislature, executive and the judiciary, the role of local governance and application of fundamental rights in practice, but also the morphing of Czech constitutionalism as a result of personal politics, conventions, informal institutions and constitutional narratives and sentiments. It explains broader societal trends that shape a lived constitution, such as implosion of the system of political parties in the 2010s, entrenchment of private interests in the state and in party politics, low trust in the EU, disillusion of ordinary people by the current form of Czech democracy and the growing inequality gap in a highly egalitarian society. Besides providing a contextual and authoritative overview of the principles, doctrines and institutions that underpin the Czech pluralist constitution, this study will allow students and scholars of law and politics to develop an informed view of how it actually works and what its main challenges are.