This book provides an account of the drafting of the Irish Free Constitution of 1922, analysing the document in its historical context and exploring the reasons for its lack of success

The second of two volumes, this book situates the drafting of the Irish Constitution within broader transnational constitutional currents. Donal K. Coffey pioneers a new method of draft sequencing in order to track early influences in the drafting process and demonstrate the importance of European influences such as the German, Polish, and Portuguese Constitutions to the Irish drafts. He also analyses the role that religion played in the drafting process, and considers the new institutions of state, such as the presidency and the senate, tracing the genesis of these institutions to other continental constitutions. Together with volume I, Constitutionalism in Ireland, 1932–1938, this book argues that the 1937 Constitution is only explicable within the context of the European and international trends which inspired it.

A comparative analysis 'from below' of attempts to constitutionalise socio-economic rights in Ireland from 1848 rebellions to present day protests.

Reproduction of the original: The Irish Constitution by Darrell Figgis

John Hearne: Architect of the 1937 Constitution of Ireland is the first-ever biography of the ‘architect in chief and draftsman’ of the constitution. In the six-year period that it took to draft the constitution, John Hearne was involved at every stage alongside Éamon de Valera; his attitudes and concerns – especially with the protection of human rights in a period which saw the rise of dictatorships throughout Europe – governed the make-up of the fundamental law. This law still stands today and reverberates through every call for referendum or repeal. John Hearne is the biography of a man, later Irish Ambassador to Canada and the United States, who masterminded Irish policy, nationally and internationally, for decades; his essential role in the making of the constitution will result in a greater understanding and re-evaluation of one of its most defining and controversial documents.

This seminal work, recognised as the authoritative and definitive commentary on Ireland's fundamental law, provides a detailed guide to the structure of the Irish Constitution. Each Article is set out in full, in English and Irish, and examined in detail, with reference to all the leading Irish and international case law. It is essential reading for all who require knowledge of the Irish legal system and will prove a vital resource to legal professionals, students and scholars of constitutional and comparative law. This new edition is fully revised and reflects the substantive changes that have occurred in the 15 years since its last edition and includes expansion and major revision to cover the many constitutional amendments, significant constitutional cases, and developing trends in constitutional adjudication. The recent constitutional changes covered in this new edition include: * The 27th Amendment abolished the constitutional jus soli right to Irish Nationality. * The 28th Amendment allowed the State to ratify the Lisbon Treaty. * The 29th Amendment relaxed the prohibition on the reduction of the salaries of Irish judges. * The 30th Amendment allowed the State to ratify the European Fiscal Compact. * The 31st Amendment was a general statement of children's rights and a provision intended to secure the power of the State to take children into care. * The 33rd Amendment mandated a new Court of Appeal * The 34th Amendment prohibited restriction on civil marriage based on sex. * The 36th Amendment allowed the Oireachtas to legislate for abortion. New sections include a look at the impact of the Constitution on substantive criminal law, and a detailed treatment of the impact of Article 40.5, protecting the inviolability of the dwelling, on both criminal procedure and civil law. Other sections have been expanded with in-depth analysis of referendums, challenges to campaigns and results, coverage of Oireachtas privilege, changes in constitutional interpretation, private property rights, and judicial independence. In particular extensive rewriting has taken place on the section dealing with the provisions relating to the courts contained in Article 34 following the establishment of the Court of Appeal and the far-reaching changes to the appellate structure from the 33rd Amendment of the Constitution Act 2013.

Originally written for the fiftieth anniversary of the Constitution of Ireland, this book is an account of how the Constitution's requirements have been implemented by the legislature and interpreted by the courts. In this way it provides an integrated and contextual account of constitutional law in Ireland. It goes as far as to place it in context of some foreign constitutions, especially the Constitutions of the United States, France, Germany and the United Kingdom, as indeed the Irish courts refer frequently to other countries for guidance in interpreting the Constitution. The book largely falls into four parts. The first few chapters are introductory and cover the drafting and adoption of the Constitution, some features of the State and its citizens, and the judicial review of laws. The next few chapters deal with the various institutions of government and with the activities of the State in the international arena and in relation to fiscal matters. Then following on from this there are a number of chapters which consider what may be termed the various civil liberties and rights. There is a final brief section, towards the end of the book which deals with the various legal breaches of the Constitution. This new edition has been extensively rewritten to account for the enormous to take into account the tumultuous changes in Irish Constitutional Law in the intervening years. Challenges to articles, referenda, new legislation, and cases are all judicially considered. Michael Forde and David Leonard offer the reader everything they need to know on this complex subject.