Constitution of France

Sophie Boyron is a senior lecturer in law at the University of Birmingham. She is also, together with John Bell and Simon Whittaker, one of the authors of Principles of French Law (OUP).

The book is a comprehensive, well-researched and well-presented piece of work…What I particularly like about this contribution, apart from its rich content, is the clear narrative style. The tone is also correctly pitched: while portraying an overall positive view of French constitutionalism, the author also draws the reader’s attention to critics who call for further reforms and encourage further research in the field…the book is a timely contribution not only to the Hart Series, but also indeed to the scholarly literature on French Constitutional Law and comparative constitutionalism. Although it requires a basic grounding in French constitutional law and history, and cognate fields, such as European law, I would recommend it to students and academics interested in the French legal system and in comparative constitutional law and politics.

• 1 French Constitutional History: A Difficult Coming of Age The Constitutional 'Big-Bang': The Revolution of 1789 The Difficult Implementation of Constitutionalism Understanding French Constitutional History Conclusion: The Merger of Constitutional Traditions? 2 In Search of the Constitutional Fundamentals The Legitimacy of the 1958 Constitution The Integrity of the 1958 Constitution The Efficiency of the 1958 Constitution: The Political System Conclusion: Something Old, Something New 3 The Primacy of the Executive The Origins – The Search for a Strong Executive The President of the Republic: From Strength to Strength A Contested Bicephalous Executive The Difficult Accountability of the Executive Conclusion 4 Towards a Renewal of the Parliament A Return to Institutional Autonomy? The Constitutional Status of Members of Parliament Parliament's Work: A Great Improvement Conclusion: Further Reform? 5 The Rise of Judicial Power The Search for Judicial Independence The Rise of the Conseil constitutionnel Towards a Judicial Power? Conclusion 6 The Constitution and its People The French People and the Constitution The Sovereign Expression of the French People A Culture of Rights Protection Conclusion: A 'New' Citizen? 7 From Centralised Unity to Multilevel Constitutionalism The Rise of Territorial Government Keeping a Check on the European Union Conclusion 8 The Dynamics of Constitutional Change The Amendment Procedure: A Question of Choice? The Dynamics of Constitutional Change The Trends for Constitutional Reform Conclusion