Codified & Uncodified

Codified and Uncodified

• Codified Constitution (e.g. USA)- advantages- disadvantages

• Uncodified Constitution (e.g. UK)- advantages- disadvantages

Codified and Uncodified

Define:a) A codified constitutionb) An uncodified constitution

Definitions

Codified• Codified constitutions are largely written, centred

around a single document incorporating key constitutional provisions that are binding on all political institutions.

• They are usually 'entrenched', enjoying the protection of a higher or supreme court, and can only be repealed or amended by special provisions, beyond the ordinary legislative process.

Definitions

Uncodified• An informal of rules not recorded in a single

document but found in a number of sources - written and unwritten (conventions) i.e. the UK constitution.

• It has the status of ordinary law.• It is not entrenched and can be changed easily.

The courts will find it difficult to determine if something is unconstitutional.

Opposites

If codified is the opposite of uncodified…

Advantage of codified constitution =

Disadvantage of uncodified constitution

Disadvantage of codified constitution =

Advantage of uncodified constitution

Codified v Uncodified

The US ConstitutionAdvantages

Disadvantages

The UK ConstitutionAdvantages

Disadvantages

Chapter 10Codified and Uncodified Constitutions

p20-251

Codified v Uncodified

The US ConstitutionAdvantages• Defines people’s liberties • Safeguard against tyrannical

government • Public can access and

understand easier. Disadvantages• Hard to agree on • Inflexible (hard to change) • Too much power to judges (new

interpretations)

The UK ConstitutionAdvantages• Flexible – easily changed (no

amendment process)• Modern – constantly evolving• Democracies can function without

codified e.g. UK, NZ, IsraelDisadvantages• Dangerous govt can exploit it • Hard for public to understand • Allows civil liberties to be

overridden

What should a constitution be?

Design-a-Constitution

In small groups you are going to come up with a list of things (e.g. rules, institutions, powers, rights) that you would include if you were going to write a constitution for the new free state of Lordswoodonia.

The only thing you have to guide you is that Lordswoodonia MUST be a “democracy”.