Judiciary

Judiciary

Main article: Judiciary

The judges of the International Court of Justice in the Hague

A judiciary is a group of judges who mediate people's disputes and determine the outcome. Most countries have a system of appeals courts, up to a supreme authority. In the U.S.A., this is the Supreme Court;^[105] in Australia, the High Court; in the U.K., the House of Lords;^[106] in Germany, the Bundesverfassungsgericht; in France, the Cour de Cassation.^[107] However, for most European countries the European Court of Justice^[108] in Luxembourg may overrule national law, where EU law is relevant. The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg allows citizens of the Council of Europe member states to bring cases to it concerning human rights issues.

Almost every country allows its highest judicial authority to strike down legislation determined to be unconstitutional. For instance, the United States Supreme Court struck down a Texan law forbidding assistance to women in abortion, in Roe v. Wade.^[109] The constitution's fourteenth amendment was interpreted to give Americans a right to privacy, hence a woman's right to choose abortion. The judiciary is theoretically bound by the constitution, much as legislative bodies are. In most countries judges may only interpret the constitution and all other laws. But in common law countries, where matters are not constitutional, the judiciary may also create law under the doctrine of precedent. On the other hand, the U.K., Finland and New Zealand still assert the ideal of parliamentary sovereignty, whereby the unelected judiciary may not overturn law passed by a democratic legislature.