Single-Member Electoral Districts Cannot Be Unconstitutional Because They Form Part of the Constitution of Canada

30 Aug 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in constitutional political economy, Public Choice Tags: ,

Introduction  The Ontario Court of Appeal issued a ruling in August 2025 which upheld the constitutionality of single-member electoral districts and lambasted so-called “Fair Vote British Columbia” (which for some reason litigated single-member plurality in Ontario) for having “repackage[ed] failed political arguments as constitutional rights violations.”[1] Justice Huscroft declared unambiguously: “The electoral system is not […]

Single-Member Electoral Districts Cannot Be Unconstitutional Because They Form Part of the Constitution of Canada

Sovereignty and Land Ownership: Distinct Legal Domains

11 Aug 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in constitutional political economy, economic history, law and economics, property rights Tags:

Introduction Throughout history, territories have frequently changed hands through war, conquest, and annexation. However, the shift in sovereignty—the legal authority to govern and control a territory—should not be conflated with the transfer of private land ownership within that territory. Sovereignty concerns public law and political authority, whereas land ownership is a matter of private law […]

Sovereignty and Land Ownership: Distinct Legal Domains

Peters and Seymour tussle over ‘Maorification’

07 Aug 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in constitutional political economy, economics of regulation, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice Tags:

Graham Adams writes – After NZ First leapfrogged Act last month in a Taxpayers’ Union-Curia poll — which led to much media excitement about the party’s rising fortunes — it seemed odd for Winston Peters to be quite so tetchy with journalists seeking his opinion on David Seymour’s views on karakia, traditional Māori prayers or incantations […]

Peters and Seymour tussle over ‘Maorification’

The judicial revolution

30 Jul 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in economics of bureaucracy, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice Tags:

An excellent article by Roger Partridge on an analysis by Emeritus Professor Peter Watts KC on the Supreme Court’s actions in Ellis vs R. I recommend you read the whole thing, but a key extract is: Before Ellis, tikanga’s role in New Zealand law was clearly defined and limited. As Watts shows, courts recognised tikanga within […]

The judicial revolution

Revolution by Judicial Decree: A Review of Professor Peter Watts KC’s “Ellis v R, A Revolution in Aotearoa New Zealand, Welcome or Not”

24 Jul 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, economic history, economics of bureaucracy, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice Tags:

Roger Partridge writes – Revolutions conjure images of violent uprisings, the storming of institutions, and the forcible overthrow of existing orders. But constitutional foundations can be destroyed through more subtle means. When judges discard long-established constitutional principles and remake the law according to their preferences, they engage in a revolution that may be no less […]

Revolution by Judicial Decree: A Review of Professor Peter Watts KC’s “Ellis v R, A Revolution in Aotearoa New Zealand, Welcome or Not”

PETER WILLIAMS (on behalf of the Taxpayers’ Union): The Nats are considering keeping Te Mana o te Wai

21 Jul 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in economics of bureaucracy, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice, resource economics Tags:

Peter Williams writes – The Taxpayers’ Union has been alerting supporters about the “Te Mana o te Wai” (literally meaning the mana of the water) requirements, which are still applicable to local councils’ environmental planning/consenting. It is becoming clear that the Coalition Government is continuing down Labour’s path of undemocratic and costly co-governance due to pressure […]

PETER WILLIAMS (on behalf of the Taxpayers’ Union): The Nats are considering keeping Te Mana o te Wai

“I have a Wonderful Opportunity”: Justice Jackson’s Cathartic Jurisprudence

13 Jul 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in law and economics, politics - USA Tags:

I wrote recently about the chilling jurisprudence of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who has drawn the ire of colleagues in opinions for her rhetoric and extreme positions. Many have expressed alarm over her adherence to what has been described by a colleague as an “imperial judiciary” model of jurisprudence. Now, it appears that Jackson’s increasingly […]

“I have a Wonderful Opportunity”: Justice Jackson’s Cathartic Jurisprudence

Echoes of Citizens for Rowling

07 Jul 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in comparative institutional analysis, constitutional political economy, economics of regulation, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice, transport economics, urban economics Tags:

Karl du Fresne writes –  Who remembers the Citizens for Rowling campaign? It was a concerted attempt by the Great and the Good to derail National Party leader Robert Muldoon’s election campaign in 1975. The campaign’s backers didn’t like Muldoon’s combative, divisive brand of politics and argued that Labour’s gentlemanly Bill Rowling, who had assumed […]

Echoes of Citizens for Rowling

The Chilling Jurisprudence of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson

28 Jun 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in law and economics, politics - USA Tags:

Below is my column in the New York Post on the controversial dissenting opinion of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson in the injunction ruling in Trump v. CASA on Friday. The opinion seemed to fan the flames of “democracy is dying” claims of protesters, suggesting that basic limits on injunctive relief could result in the collapse […]

The Chilling Jurisprudence of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson

The Claude Rains School of Constitutional Law: Democrats Denounce Iranian Attack as Unconstitutional

23 Jun 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in defence economics, politics - USA, war and peace Tags: , , ,

Yesterday, I wrote a column in the Hill discussing how Trump is unlikely to go to Congress in launching an attack on Iran and how he has history on his side in acting unilaterally. The column noted that many Democratic politicians and pundits who were supportive of such unilateral actions by Democratic presidents such as […]

The Claude Rains School of Constitutional Law: Democrats Denounce Iranian Attack as Unconstitutional

A clear line

19 Jun 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in constitutional political economy, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice Tags:

The Herald reports: Ngāti Hine leader Pita Tipene is ruling out a settlement under this Government after remarks made by Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith.  Goldsmith said on Tuesday the Government would not agree to Treaty settlements that disputed whether the Crown is now sovereign.  Under the previous Labour Government, an initial deed of settlement […]

A clear line

Sovereignty line in sand

18 Jun 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in constitutional political economy, economic history, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice Tags:

The government has drawn a  line in the sand on sovereignty: Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says the Government will not agree to Treaty settlements that dispute whether the Crown is now sovereign. Goldsmith made the comments to the Māori Affairs select committee this morning amid ongoing negotiations with East Coast iwi Te Whānau-ā-Apanui and […]

Sovereignty line in sand

Always Ready, Always There: Democrats Mobilize Against the National Guard Deployment

10 Jun 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - USA Tags: , ,

Below is my column in Fox.com on the deployment of National Guard in Los Angeles. Another round of court challenges are unfolding, but the escalation is likely to continue on both sides. While the Guard’s motto is “Always Ready, Always There!,” California Democrats do not want them between rioters and federal law enforcement. Here is […]

Always Ready, Always There: Democrats Mobilize Against the National Guard Deployment

The Maori Party thumbs its nose at democracy

10 Jun 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags: ,

Michael Bassett writes –  Have you noticed how contemptuous the Maori Party’s MPs are of democracy? After all, people who self-designate themselves as Maori are only 17% of the population. And amongst them, only a small proportion vote for the Maori Party. The brutal reality is that much higher numbers of Maori support Labour, while […]

The Maori Party thumbs its nose at democracy

The Ultra Vires Reach of the Resource Management Act: Te Tiriti Obligations, Private Citizens, and the Erosion of Legal Boundaries

05 Jun 2025 Leave a comment

by Jim Rose in economics of bureaucracy, economics of regulation, law and economics, politics - New Zealand, property rights, Public Choice, rentseeking Tags:

Zoran Rakovic writes – This essay argues that the New Zealand government has acted ultra vires by interpreting and applying the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) in ways that impose Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations upon private citizens and resource consent applicants without express statutory authority or due compensation. The practice violates foundational principles of […]

The Ultra Vires Reach of the Resource Management Act: Te Tiriti Obligations, Private Citizens, and the Erosion of Legal Boundaries

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