The Theory and Practice of Constitutional Dismemberment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5294/dika.2025.34.1.18Keywords:
Constitutional amendment, constitutional dismemberment, Constitution Reform Committee of Jamaica, Constitution of Jamaica, reconstruction, Constitution of the United StatesAbstract
In this essay, prepared for a special issue of Díkaion on my book Reformas constitucionales: Elaborar, romper y cambiar constituciones, I illustrate the theory of constitutional dismemberment with reference to the constitutional reform process in Jamaica, where I hold a government appointment as a member of the 15-person Constitutional Reform Committee. I explain that constitutions are best designed when they codify multiple procedures of constitutional reform according to an escalating structure of difficulty: less onerous procedures for minor housekeeping constitutional changes and more onerous procedures for major transformative constitutional changes. This advanced design of constitutional reform balances flexibility with rigidity, prioritizes clarity and transparency, and establishes a hierarchy of constitutional importance.
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