Abstract

The most extensive account ever, at least in English, of the constitutional doctrine of 'separation of powers', as well as one of the most extensive in English of the idea of 'the rule of law' and its European counterpart, the notion of a 'legal state (German, Rechtsstaat)'. It draws on sources in several languages and disciplines, and many legal systems both ancient and modern. It also proposes a novel basis for judicial independence - outside the tricky sphere of separation of powers.