In her recent book The Collaborative Constitution (Cambridge University Press, 2023), professor Aileen Kavanagh provides a novel perspective on safeguarding rights within a democracy. Differing from dominant theories that view courts and legislature as competitors for constitutional dominance, Kavanagh posits that defending rights is a cooperative effort involving all three branches of government: the executive, the legislature, and the courts. This collaborative approach to constitutionalism implies that protecting rights is neither the sole responsibility of an all-powerful judge nor solely the esteemed declarations of a wise legislature. Rather, it is a multifaceted, evolving cooperative undertaking, where each branch has a unique yet complementary role, interacting with one another in a spirit of comity and mutual respect. By linking constitutional theory with the practical aspects of defending rights in a democracy, Professor Kavanagh’s latest book presents an innovative interpretation of the separation of powers rooted in the principles and virtues of constitutional collaboration.

Guest: Aileen Kavanagh (Professor of Constitutional Governance at Trinity College Dublin's School of Law, Director of the Trinity Center for Constitutional Governance)

Date: 6 March 2025, 4:00 pm

Venue: Budapest, 1113 Tas vezér utca 3-7., Szilágyi Erzsébet Room

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This event is open to the public.

MCC students can earn credit for actively participating in the event, provided they read the required chapters and paper(s) and prepare three questions for the Q&A session of the research seminar.

Questions related to the required reading must be submitted to Kálmán Pócza at pocza.kalman@mcc.hu by 11:00 PM on 4 March, 2025.

Required Reading: Please contact Kálmán Pócza to obtain the electronic version of the paper.

Submission Deadline: 4 March, 2025, 11:00 PM

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