The article presents a conceptual framework and empirical methodology of an on-going research on the role of ideology in the decisions of the Slovenian Constitution Court. The literature review demonstrates that research on judicial ideology in the courts of European countries and international courts is still rare. This can be explained by conceptual, methodological and empirical challenges posed by this type of research. The article hence advances a conceptual framework which is, contra to the mainstream theoretical approach in the field, based on a multidimensional conception of ideology that is empirically operationalised along the economic, social and authoritarian dimensions with five possible ideological positions on each dimension. By applying the newly developed methodology to a sample of Courts decisions, it is demonstrated that this methodological approach is able to account for ideological differences between judges. This confirms that (judges) ideology is a complex multidimensional set of values and convictions that cannot be reduced to simply equating ideology with (possible) political affiliations.
COBISS.SI-ID: 2053336502
Article presents the authoritarian dimension of judicial ideology in the case law of the Slovenian Constitutional Court.
COBISS.SI-ID: 49478147
The article addresses two research questions. First, what is a judicial ideology? Second, what is the role of judicial ideology in a legal system, concretely in the process of judicial decision-making? The discussion is broken down into two parts. Initially, it defines judicial ideology by delineating it from a general notion of ideology and consequently by differentiating it from judicial philosophy. It is argued that judicial ideology should be better understood in multidimensional rather than binary terms. This enables us, in the second part, to hypothesise about the potential role of judicial ideology in the process of judicial decision-making. It is argued that concerning this question three conceptions of the role of judicial ideology in law exist and that, if opting for a discursive conception, the relevance of judicial ideology in the practice of courts can be quite meaningful.
COBISS.SI-ID: 17099089
Article presents the main findings of the research project and normative guidelines for the improvement of the functioning of the Constitutional Court.
COBISS.SI-ID: 26992131
This monograph represents the first in-depth research in the ideological profile of Constitutional Court judges in Slovenia. The book in a methodologically rigorous manner depicts and explains the impact of ideology on the interpretation of legal rules and judicial decisions.
COBISS.SI-ID: 53723139