Essential elements f the doctrine of fundamental rights

Abstract

The interpretation of fundamental rights is commonly unclear and debated. However, they are crucial in liberal democracies, since they limit the results of democratic processes. Giving rise to a compromise on the part of the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. Thus, the interpretation of fundamental rights must be as clear and convincing as possible. This requires, in turn, a comprehensive and coherent doctrine between the national and the international. Theoretical considerations suggest and the jurisprudence of the high courts demonstrates that the principle of proportionality is the axis of this doctrine. This book seeks to develop and deepen the elements of the doctrine of fundamental rights: The distinction of the different dimensions of rights (liberty rights, benefit rights and equality rights), the horizontal effect of these rights, the scheme to evaluate the claims emanating from the rights of freedom and benefit, the analysis of proportionality in the context of these different types of rights, a reconstruction of the weighting used by the constitutional courts and a recognition of the moral foundations of the legal instruments for the protection of human rights.