# Large-scale, multi-entity legal doctrines Constitutionality presumption - the judiciary should presume the legislature's statutes are constitutional Enrolled bill rule - once a bill passes a legislative body and is passed into law, the courts assume all rules of procedure in the enactment process were properly followed Exhaustion of remedies - a litigant can't seek a remedy in a new court or jurisdiction until all claims or remedies in that court have been fully exhausted Forum non conveniens - Latin for "an inconvenient forum", a court acknowledges another forum or court is a more appropriate one, so they transfer the case to that forum Implied repeal - when a legislative act conflicts with a previous one, the later act takes precedence and the conflicting parts of the earlier act become legally inoperable Inherent powers - a state has certain non-negotiable powers Judicial deference - aka "Chevron deference", a court will yield or submit its judgment to another legitimate party (e.g., the executive branch in the interests of national defense), has been diluted with Loper Bright decision in 2024 Judicial discretion - judicial powers can make some legal decisions according to their discretion without precedent, legislation, or a constitution Jus sanguinis - Latin for "blood right", a person is entitled to become the nationality/citizenship of their heritage, in contrast with jus soli Jus soli - Latin for "soil right", aka "birthright citizenship", a person is entitled to become the nationality/citizenship of the country they're born in, in contrast with jus sanguinis Law of the case - if an appellate court doesn't take a lower court's case, it won't do it again later with the same substantial facts Legal transplant - the best way to test out new governments is for laws to transplant and adapt into new government and court systems Margin of appreciations (human rights law) - in the European Convention of Human Rights, courts can reconcile practical differences in reconciling articles of the convention pertaining to human rights Mozambique rule - a court has no jurisdiction over foreign land disputes Necessity doctrine - an administrative authority can lawfully take extraordinary actions that contravene established constitution, laws, norms, or conventions if it restores order or upholds fundamental constitutional principles Non-refoulement - a nation cannot send a refugee to a country if they're at risk of persecution there Odious debt - aka "illegitimate debt", the national debt incurred by a despotic regime should not be enforceable Peremptory norm - aka "jus cogens", some cultural norms are *not* permitted to ever be lawful (e.g., genocide, slavery, maritime piracy) Public trust doctrine (environmental law) - the sovereign holds some resources in trust for public use, regardless of private property ownership (e.g., shoreline between high and low tides) Rule against foreign revenue enforcement - aka "revenue rule", one country will not enforce another country's tax laws Separation of powers doctrine - To keep the roles separate to avoid tyranny, a constitutional government requires 3 different branches (Legislative, Executive, and Judicial) with defined abilities that can check the power of the others Stopping the clock (USA & Canada) - sometimes, to meet a Constitutional deadline, a legislature will sometimes literally stop the clock or push out a deadline to meet requirements for procedure Subsidiarity - social and political issues should be dealt with at the most immediate or local level that's consistent with the resolution Substance over form - the essence of something (its "substance") is more relevant than its structure (its "form") Territorial principle - aka "territoriality principle", each sovereign state can exercise its own exclusive jurisdiction over individuals and entities within its territory, including prosecuting for criminal offenses and arresting/apprehending individuals Tipsy coachman doctrine - a ruling in a higher court that rules the same way will still stand, even when the lower court used the wrong reasoning to get to the same conclusion Universal jurisdiction - governments and international organizations can claim criminal jurisdiction over an accused person regardless of the situation (e.g., where the crime was committed, that person's nationality, affiliations) ## USA Abstention doctrine - one of several doctrines a US court can apply to refuse hearing a case if it interferes with another court's powers Act-of-state doctrine - Every sovereign state is bound to respect the independence of every other sovereign state, so courts won't judge the acts of other governments or foreign sovereign nationals Adequate and independent state ground - A federal Supreme Court decision doesn't have jurisdiction over a case if the state ground is (1) "adequate" to support the judgment and (2) "independent" of federal law Alford doctrine/plea - a defendant cannot admit to the criminal act and will assert their innocence, but can admit the evidence presented *would* create a guilty verdict beyond a reasonable doubt if placed in front of a judge/jury, the basis of most plea bargains Equal footing doctrine - all states brought into the United States have the same status as the existing states Erie doctrine - for federal courts managing non-federal questions, they must apply state-based answers Executive privilege - the president of the USA and other executive branch members can maintain confidential communications under certain circumstances within the executive branch, and can resist some legal actions by the legislative and judicial branches Implied powers - some powers are not directly stated in the Constitution, but are implied to be available based on previously stated power Ker-Frisbie doctrine - criminal defendants may be prosecuted in US courts irrespective of whether an extradition treaty was used Major questions doctrine - aka "major rules doctrine", if an agency seeks to decide on an issue of major national significance its action must be supported by *clear* statutory authorization Mount Laurel doctrine - in New Jersey, municipalities must use their zoning powers to provide a realistic opportunity for producing affordable housing to low- and moderate-income households Parker immunity doctrine (antitrust law) - government authorities are immune to liability when they create regulations with anticompetitive effects Political question doctrine - a constitutional dispute that's not a legal discussion, uses techniques not related to court procedures, or is explicitly assigned to Congress or the President is considered political and is outside the scope of the courts, refers to separation of powers doctrine Purcell principle - courts should not change election rules too closely to an election because it may cause confusion Rooker-Feldman doctrine - Federal courts that aren't the Supreme Court can't make decisions for appeals that arose from state courts, which means that any state appeal goes all the way up to the Supreme Court State action doctrine - While a state is required to honor equal protections against individuals, individuals don't have to honor equal protections against other individuals, points to 14th Amendment ## UK Demise of the Crown - when a monarch dies or abdicates their throne, the Crown and its authority automatically transfers to that monarch's heir Inherent jurisdiction - a superior court has the jurisdiction to hear any matter that comes before it unless a law prohibits it ## Canada Double aspect doctrine - laws can be created by both provincial and federal governments in relation to the same subject Living tree doctrine - a constitution is organic and must be read in a broad and progressive manner to adapt to changing times Pith and substance - the essential character of the law ("pith and substance") can be assigned to the appropriate provincial or federal government depending on which part of the Constitution it falls under ## India Basic structure doctrine - the constitution of a sovereign state has certain characteristics that can't be erased by its legislature Colourability doctrine - when a legislature wants to do something its constitution forbids, it "colours" the law with a substitute purpose that permits that legislature to accomplish its original goal ## Australia Exceptional circumstances - a government agency or government leader can receive additional powers to alleviate or mitigate unforeseen or unconventional hardship ## EU Conferral principle - all EU competences are voluntarily conferred on it by its member states, so the member states' influence supersedes all EU precepts