The Constitutional Identity of the Netherlands

The chapters in this book offer an analysis of the country’s constitutional identity from various perspectives. Constitutional identity has become a commonly used instrument in studying legal orders. This book understands such identity as an order’s core or fundamental elements or values as the expression of its individuality.

The contributions, written by legal experts in their respective fields, provide insights into Dutch constitutional identity by drawing on important constitutional concepts and arrangements, as well as relevant themes. This covers a wide range of topics, among them “democracy based on the rule of law”, “fundamental rights”, “the courts and the constitution”, “state and religion” and “law and digitalisation”.

The chapters provide a broad field of in-depth perspectives to not only inform and stimulate academic debate about their specific topics, but also about the country’s constitutional law as such. In addition to national and comparative constitutional law scholars, this collection will also be of value to lawyers and policymakers dealing with constitutional law and identity questions.

Gerhard van der Schyff is Associate Professor at Tilburg Law School, Department of Public Law and Governance in Tilburg, The Netherlands.