
The System of the Constitution
Adrian Vermeule(Author)
Oxford University Press Inc
1st Edition
Published on 12. January 2012
Book
Hardback
232 pages
978-0-19-983845-5 (ISBN)
Description
A constitutional order is a system of systems. It is an aggregate of interacting institutions, which are themselves aggregates of interacting individuals. In The System of the Constitution, Adrian Vermeule analyzes constitutionalism through the lens of systems theory, originally developed in biology, computer science, political science and other disciplines. Systems theory illuminates both the structural constitution and constitutional judging, and reveals that standard views and claims about constitutional theory commit fallacies of aggregation and are thus invalid. By contrast, Vermeule explains and illustrates an approach to constitutionalism that considers the systemic interactions of legal and political institutions and of the individuals who act within them.
Reviews / Votes
"In this iconoclastic and provocative book, Adrian Vermeule brings a sharp understanding of institutional dynamics and processes to bear on central issues in constitutional analysis. In doing so he unsettles much received wisdom and shows how many arguments in constitutional theory have relied on static or fallacious models of how actors respond in ongoing constitutional systems. This is clarifying and important work at the intersection of political science andlaw, and deserves to be widely read in both fields."--Jacob T. Levy, McGill University
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Students and scholars of constitutional law, legal theory, social scientific theory, systems theory
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 18 mm
Weight
553 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-983845-5 (9780199838455)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Adrian Vermeule
The System of the Constitution
E-Book
12/2011
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€32.99
Available for download

Adrian Vermeule
The System of the Constitution
E-Book
12/2011
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€23.99
Available for download
Person
Adrian Vermeule is Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. He is the author of Mechanisms of Democracy (OUP 2007) and Law and the Limits of Reason (OUP 2008), and co-author with Eric Posner of Terror in the Balance (OUP 2006) and The Executive Unbound (OUP 2011).
Content
Introduction: A System of Systems ; 1. Systemic Analysis ; 2. The Structural Constitution ; 3. Dilemmas of the Invisible Hand ; 4. Systemic Feedback Through Selection ; 5. Constitutional Judging ; Conclusion: Two Degrees of Aggregation