The Rule of Law in Central Europe The Reconstruction of Legality, Constitutionalism and Civil Society in the Post-Communist Countries

First published in 1999, this volume is a series of essays on the countries of Central Europe. The essays explore the post-1989 establishment of the rule of law and civil society. It brings together analysis and perceptions from social scientists, political scientists and lawyers, seeking through particular issues to explore the similarities and differences between different countries. While other books have explored the changes in former Soviet Block countries since 1989, the book’s distinctiveness lies in three qualities: its concentration on Central Europe a concept explored in the book; giving fuller attention to the Czech Republic and Slovakia than other post-communist studies often do; providing perceptions of scholars from different disciplines.

1. Central European in Transition: An Introduction. Jirí Pribán and James Young. Part 1. The Czech Republic. 2. Constitutionalism in the Czech Republic. Dušan Hendrych. 3. Legitimacy and Legality after the Velvet Revolution. Jirí Pribán. 4. Lustration and Decommunisation. Mark Gillis. 5. The Protection of Human Rights in the Czech Republic. Vladimír Sládecek. Part 2. Slovakia. 6. Does the Rule of Law (Rechtsstaat) Exist in Slovakia? Miroslav Kusý. 7. The National Elite and the Democratic Deficit in Slovakia. Sona Szomolányi. Part 3. Hungary. 8. (Re)Building the Rule of Law in Hungary: Jewish and Gypsy Perspectives. Istvan Pogany. 9. Socialist Welfare Schemes and Constitutional Adjudication in Hungary. Andras Sajo. Part 4. Poland. 10. The Rule of Law in Poland. Jacek Kurczewski. 11. Between "Civil Society" and "Europe": Post-Classical Constitutionalism after the Collapse of Communism in a Socio-Legal Perspective. Grazyna Skapska. 12. Women’s Rights and the Rule of Law in Poland. Malgorzata Fuszara. 13. The Judiciary’s Struggle towards the Rule of Law in Poland. Agata Fijalkowski. Part 5. Russia. 14. Politics versus the Rule of Law in the Work of the Russian Constitutional Court. Bill Bowring.

Jirí Pribán, Faculty of Law, Charles University, Prague and Cardiff Law School, University of Wales, Cardiff. James Young, Cardiff Law School, University of Wales, Cardiff.