Passive and active legitimacy Constitutional Courts

Abstract

Like the ancient god Janus, legitimacy, a classical topic in political science, take a doublefaced appearance, when applied to contemporary Constitutional Courts. These judicial bodies are supposed to be «legitimate» both in a passive and in an active direction, that is, both as recipients and as providers of legitimacy, both qualities being interrelated. The crux of the judicial branch of government is that, on the basis of a growing demand for them to decide on highly sensible, if not existential matters, they may be incited to speak «from above» the institutional fabric in which they are embedded. With that in mind, a call is made for «repatriation» of constitutional adjudication.