Constitutionalizing the Private Sphere: A Comparative Inquiry

Name: Constitutionalizing the Private Sphere: A Comparative Inquiry
Brand: Cambridge University Press
SKU: 9781009293709
Price: 377.33 HKD
Availability: InStock
Author: Christina R. Bambrick
ISBN: 9781009293709

By Christina R. Bambrick

Cambridge University Press January 2026

Specifications

ISBN-13: 9781009293709
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Publication: January 2026
Format: Paperback
Jurisdiction: U.K. ? Countri(es) for reference only

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Hardback

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Do private actors have constitutional duties?

While traditionally only government actors are responsible for upholding constitutional rights, courts and constitution-makers increasingly do assign constitutional duties to private actors as well. Therefore, a landlord may have constitutional duties to their tenants, and a sports club may even have duties to its fans. This book argues that this phenomenon of applying rights 'horizontally' can be understood through the lens of republican political theory. Themes echoing such concepts as the common good and civic duty from republican thought recur in discourses surrounding horizontal application.

Bambrick traces republican themes in debates from the United States, India, Germany, South Africa, and the European Union. While these contexts have vastly different histories and aspirations, constitutional actors in each place have considered the horizontal application of rights and, in doing so, have made republican arguments.

1. Introduction

2. A republican vein in liberal constitutionalism

Part I. Equality:

3. The United States: equality along the public-private divide

4. India: citizens' duties in aspiring to equality

Part II. Transformation:

5. Germany: new tensions amid radiating values

6. South Africa: toward societal transformation

7. The European union: republicanism in supranational context

8. Conclusion

Bibliography

Index