TFL Vsebine / Zbornik znanstvenih razprav

Vladavina prava je danes eden od ključnih pojmov v mednarodnih odnosih in predmet ostrih javnih polemik v številnih državah. Gre za pravni in politični ideal, s katerim običajno zagovarjamo večje priznanje prava in pravnih ustanov v moderni družbi. Do tega razvoja prihaja ne glede na dejstvo, da je tako v pravnem kot tudi političnem smislu vsebina tega pojma izrazito nejasna in se lahko zelo razlikuje glede na kontekst. Za boljše razumevanje dilem pri interpretacijah vladavine prava avtor predlaga razlikovanje med tradicionalnim pojmovanjem, ki mu lahko rečemo ustavno, in novejšim pojmovanjem, ki bi ga lahko najlažje označili kot institucionalno. Klasično pojmovanje vladavine prava jo razume predvsem kot ustavno načelo, ki na splošno izraža liberalne poglede na primerno razmerje med pravom, posameznikom in moderno ustavno državo. V zadnjih nekaj desetletjih pa smo zlasti v mednarodnem kontekstu priča tudi nastanku drugačnega, splošnejšega in empiričnega razumevanja tega izraza, predvsem v povezavi delovanjem pravnih institucij. Sklicevanje na to vrsto vladavine zaznamujejo vprašanja o tem, ali pravo deluje v praksi, ne le med posameznikom in državo, temveč tudi v razmerjih med posamezniki. Ta različica vladavine prava se pogosto povezuje z delovanjem pravosodja in s postopki za reševanje sporov. Institucionalni pogled na vladavino prava lahko zato koristno dopolni klasične poglede z vidiki, ki poudarjajo institucionalne cilje v javnem diskurzu o legitimnosti prava.

The rule of law is today one of the leading notions in international relations and an object of intense public debate in many countries. As a legal and political ideal, it is invoked to argue for greater recognition of law and legal institutions in modern society. This is happening even if there is no generally accepted understanding of what it actually is in either political or legal terms, and its meaning can differ considerably depending on the social and geographical environment. To facilitate the contemporary rule of law debate, this article proposes a primary distinction between what might be termed classical and institutional interpretations of this concept. It is suggested that under the classical view, the rule of law is understood as a constitutional principle, broadly expressing liberal doctrines on the proper relationship between law, the individual and the modern constitutional state. In the last few decades, however, we have also witnessed, especially in the international context, the appearance of another, more general and empirical usage of the term, applied mainly in relation to the working of legal institutions. References to the rule of law of this kind are characterised by questions about whether and how law works in practice, not just in relation to the state but also in relations between individuals. This version of the rule of law is often strongly associated with the working of judicial institutions and dispute resolution procedures. The institutional view of the rule of law therefore helpfully supplements the classical view with new elements that highlight institutional objectives in legal and public discourse about the legitimacy of law.