VOCABULARY BANK - CONSTITUTIONAL LAW
abstention - a formal decision not to vote for or against something in an election
The motion was carried by 200 votes to 150; there were 15 abstentions.
to abolish - to end a system, practice or institution forever
The Ottoman Sultanate and all aristocratic titles were abolished in 1922.
to abrogate - to end something such as a law, a treaty, or a political arrangement, often without the
agreement of the other people or groups involved
to abide by - to obey the law; to act according to a rule, promise, or agreement; to accept a rule,
promise, or agreement
to abridge – to lessen, to diminish
accountability - a requirement to offer explanation for an action; responsibility for one’s action
(implies that there is someone to whom one is responsible)
Who can be accountable to the Tribunal of State?
to adjudicate - to act as an official judge in a dispute; to make a formal decision about something
administration - 1) the control or management of something; 2) the group of people who organize
or control something; 3) the collection and distribution of a deceased's assets

public administration

administration of justice
to amend - alter, modify, change, rephrase
amendment - change
Presidential power was reduced by a constitutional amendment in 1991.
amendable to appoint - to choose someone formally for a particular position or job
Judges of Constitutional Court of the Azerbaijan Republic are appointed by Milli Majlis on
recommendation of the President of the Azerbaijan Republic.
to approve - to give official consent
arbitrary - subject to individual will or judgment without restriction; contingent solely upon one's
discretion
assembly - 1) a group of people who are elected to govern, make decisions or make laws for a
particular country, area or organisation; 2) large group of people who come together for a particular
purpose
 freedom of assembly
autonomy - a self-governing to a certain extent community
 autonomous region
The Republic, one and indivisible, shall recognize and encourage the local autonomies.
authenticated - officially validated document
ballot - the method of secret voting by means of printed or written ballots or by means of voting
machines
Elections to the Sejm and Senate shall be universal, equal, direct and conducted by a secret ballot.
bicameral - having two chambers or houses as a legislative body
bill - a draft of law presented to a legislature for enactment

to introduce a bill
branches of government - legislative (makes laws); executive (carries out laws); judicial (evaluates
laws)
by-election - an election organized in order to choose a new representative who will replace
someone who has died or quit
bylaws (by-laws) - rules made by a local body or council under authority of a statute; secondary
legislation
Cabinet - Council of Ministers
to cast votes - to vote
Checks and Balances - the constitutional doctrine that each of the three branches of government
operates as a check on the power of the other branches
citizen - a person possessing certain nationality
civil disobedience - nonviolent resistance; active refusal to obey certain laws, demands and
commands of a government, or of an occupying international power.
civil society - the aggregate of non-governmental organizations and institutions that manifest
interests and will of citizens; individuals and organizations in society which are independent of the
government.
coat of arms - a special design that a country or organization uses as its sign
Article 28 specifies that the Polish coat of arms shall consist of an image of an eagle wearing a
golden crown, with its wings outstretched, its head turned to its right and its beak and talons golden,
in a red field.
competence - the ability to do something
Commander in Chief - person in charge of the armed forces of a country
The President of the republic is the Commander-in-Chief of Military Forces of the republic.
concurrent - running together

concurrent powers - powers that are shared by federal and constituent
governments under a federal constitution. Where laws in an area of concurrency
conflict, the federal law is normally paramount
to conform with/to - to obey a rule or law; to come up to a particular standard
conformity - behavior which conforms to rules and customs
The Constitutional Tribunal decides on issues of conformity of laws with the Constitution.
consent - permission or agreement
 to grant consent
constituency - a unit (usually geographical) that elects one or more members to the legislature or
other bodies; voting district
Constitution - set of rules which define the relationship between the various organs of government
and between the government and citizens of a country
 in accordance with the Constitution
 in compliance with the Constitution
 the bills conform with the Constitution
Britain has no written constitution.
Constitutional Court/Tribunal - specialized court or tribunal that has the final say in interpreting the
constitution and also deciding whether or not national laws are in accordance with the constitution
or are unconstitutional ;it will not occupy itself with other types of cases that are not directly related
to constitution
to construe - to determine the meaning of a written document, statute, or legal decision, based
upon rules of legal interpretation
to contradict - to say the opposite of what someone else has said
coup d' etat - the rapid, illegal taking of government power, usually by force and involving the
military
currency - the system of money that is used by a particular country
to declare war - to officially announce war
decree - an order, especially one made by head of state or government, that has the force of law but
which has not necessarily been passed into law by legislature
to deem - to consider or judge something in a particular way
This survey is deemed to be a reliable barometer of public opinion.
to delegate - to give task or responsibility to someone else or to some other institution; to transfer
the authority to do something to another person or to some other institution
Republic of Poland may, by virtue of international agreements, delegate to an international
organization or international institution the competence of organs of State authority in relation to
certain matters.
delegated legislation - law made by statutory authorities and government departments under
powers given to them by (primary) legislation to carry out the requirements of the primary legislation
delegated powers - powers that are assigned by one level of the government to another on a
revocable basis
to deprive - prevent someone from having or using something
discretion - the freedom to decide how to act or what should be done in a particular situation
 abuse of discretion
 within discretion
to disenfranchise - to take away someone's right to vote
disenfranchisement - the fact of taking away someone's right to vote; the fact of having your right to
vote taken away.
Opponents of electronic voting claim that it will likely lead to the disenfranchisement of eligible
voters.
dissenting opinion – a separate opinion written by one or more justices in a case; this opinion
disagrees with the decision of the majority of the court
due process – administration of justice according to rules and principles
duty - a legal obligation

duty of loyalty
eligible - having required qualities or fulfilling the required conditions to do, be or get something
election - the process of selecting a person of choice through voting
 affirmative votes
electoral system - the method of converting votes into seats in an elected body
to enact - to make or pass a law
enshrined - written into a document, including a constitution.
 to be enshrined in - to be protected by being included in something
Freedom of speech is enshrined in the constitution.
entrenched - fixed, difficult or impossible to change, irreversible
exclusive - pertaining to the subject alone, not including, admitting, or pertaining to any others; sole;
not shared with others
 exclusive competence - power assigned exclusively to one order of government
expiry - the end of the time during which something is valid, good or usable
federal - relating to a nation's central government, and not to the government of a region within that
nation
federalism - a system of government where several states pool their sovereignty to a central
government in some areas, but keep their independence in others
franchise - the right to vote in an election, especially in order to elect a parliament or similar lawmaking organization
American women worked for decades to win the franchise.
freedom of thought, conscience and religion
freedom of speech or expression
governance - the act of governing, exercising power
government – the system or form by which a community is ruled
hierarchy – any system with grades of authority or status from the lowest to the highest
 to introduce hierarchy

hierarchy of norms - a hierarchy between different categories of legal acts and how they
relate to each other
human rights - the idea that there are basic rights and freedoms that all humans should be
guaranteed because of the fact that they are human, including right to equality, equal opportunity in
an environment free of discrimination and equality before the law
impeachment - process under which charges are brought against a high constitutional authority,
public official or judge and removing him/her from office
indictment – an accusation of wrongdoing; written accusation of a crime made against a person by
prosecutor to a grand jury
indigenous - naturally existing in a place or country rather than arriving from another place
 indigenous people
to infringe – advance beyond usual limit
to invalidate - to take away the legal force or effectiveness; to annul
inviolability and integrity of territory to invoke - 1) to use a law or rule in order to achieve something; 2) to ask for help from someone
who is stronger or more powerful, especially a god; 3) to mention law, principle or idea in order to
support an argument
Judicial Review – the power of the courts to review statutory law to determine whether it is in
accordance with constitution and to invalidate the act if it is determined to be contrary to
constitutional provisions or principles
judiciary - the branch of a country's government that is responsible for its legal system; all of a
jurisdiction's judges and its courts of law, collectively
jurisdiction - the legal power to hear and decide a case. If the court does not have the jurisdiction to
hear a case, its decision will be void.
to legislate - to make law or laws
legislation - the act of making laws
legislative initiative - the right of competent persons and institutions to introduce for the
consideration of a legislative body a bill or proposal to enact a new law or an amendment to or a
repeal of existing legislation
legislature - a selected body of people, usually elected, that has power and responsibility to make
and repeal laws
legitimacy - the quality of being legal
 legitimate
 illegitimate
liberty – freedom
majority - the larger number or part of something
 simple majority - a vote of more than 50% of those voting
 absolute majority - a result in an election when one person or political party wins more than
half the total votes or seats
martial law - a situation in which the normal legal system of a city or country etc is stopped and
replaced by military rule. Martial law can be imposed by the army or used by governments to enforce
their rule over the public.
The army has imposed martial law and suspended the constitution after taking over.
militia – civilians trained as soldiers, not part of the regular army
naval ensign - ensign used by Navy vessels to denote nationality
A similar flag with the addition of a swallow-tail is used as the naval ensign of Poland.
naval forces – an organization of military vessels belonging to a country and available for sea warfare
to nullify - to make legal agreement or decision lose its legal force
oath – a solemn promise regarding your future acts or behaviour

to take an oath

to administer an oath
to observe - to obey, to follow
observance - obeying legal or other rules
Ombudsman - a government official who reports on complaints made by ordinary people against
public authorities
ordinance - a law adopted by a local governmental autgority
to override - to reject or cancel a decision using one's authority
The Congress can override a veto of the President by a two-thirds vote.
to overthrow - to invalidate, to debunk, to abolish
Parliament - the name given in some countries to legislative branch of government
 to summon the Parliament
• to dissolve the Parliament
There are two chambers in the British parliament - the House of Commons in the lower chamber, and
the House of Lords is the upper chamber.
poll - a study in which people are asked for their opinions about a subject or person
We are carrying out a poll to find out what people think about abortion.
the polls - the places where people vote in a political election
to go to the polls - to vote
power to give pardons - power of mercy;power to release a person from punishment; competence
to allow a person who has been convicted of a crime to be free and absolved of that conviction, as if
never convicted.
Preamble - a clause at the beginning of a constitution of statute explaining the reasons for its
enactment and the objectives for its enactment and the objectives it seeks to attain
presumption of innocence - a principle that requires the government to prove the guilt of a criminal
defendant and relieves the defendant of any burden to prove his/her innocence
to promulgate - to officially announce, to publish, to make known to the public; to formally
announce a statute or a decision by a court
prosecution – legal proceedings against a defendant for criminal behaviour
to quash - to say officially that something, especially an earlier official decision, is no longer to be
accepted
quorum - the minimum number of people who must be present to pass a law
to ratify - to settle, confirm or affirm by express or implied consent to something done or agreed to
by an agent or servant
referendum - a direct vote in which all the people in a country or an area are asked to give their
opinion about or decide an important political or social question
Is it more democratic to hold a referendum, rather than let the government alone decide?
to regulate - to control an activity, process, or industry officially by using rules
to repeal - to state officially that a law no longer has legal authority and is not binding anymore
The act of a higher legal force repeals the act of lower legal status.
responsibility - duty
revenue - income that a government receives regularly
Taxes provide most of the government's revenue.
right to privacy - right not to have one's personal matters disclosed or publicized; the right to be left
alone; the right against undue government intrusion into fundamental personal issues and decisions
rigid - fixed; not able to be changed or persuaded
royal prerogative - special rights of a king or queen
rule of law - the principle that the authority of the government may only be exercised in accordance
with public laws that are adopted and enforced in accordance with established procedure
to safeguard - to do something or plan some action to stop something unwanted form happening
Local authorities have a duty to safeguard the public.
The Republic shall safeguard linguistic minorities.
sanction - 1) order to stop trade or communication with a country that has violated international
law; 2) punishment for not obeying the law
 to impose sanctions
secular - not having any connection with religion
 secular state
self-government - a situation in which a country or a region is governed by its own people, not by
people from outside

local self-government
Local self-government is carried out by municipalities.
Separation of Powers - the constitutional doctrine that each of the three branches of government
has separate and distinct powers; executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government are kept
separate to prevent abuse of power
sovereign - a supreme ruler
sovereign - having supreme power or authority, or being completely independent
sovereignty - supreme power or authority
suffrage - the right to vote in elections
 universal suffrage - a situation where the right to vote is given to all adult members
of a population
to stand - to offer yourself as a candidate in an election
I will vote for him whenever he stand for election.
state of emergency - a situation in which a government takes action to deal with an event such as a
flood or a fire that is putting a lot of people in danger
statute - a form of written law, such as an Act of Parliament, passed by a legislative body
tenure - the amount of time for that a person holds office
His tenure in office will end with the next election.
term - the fixed period of time that something lasts for
The government's term of office expires at the end of the year.
The Sejm and Senate shall be chosen for a 4-year term of office.
transparency - openness to public scrutiny
the Treasury - the government department that is responsible for financial matters such as spending
and tax
treason - the crime of showing no loyalty to your country, especially by helping its enemies or trying
to defeat its government
unconstitutional - not allowed by the constitution
unicameral - having one chambers or house as a legislative body
unitary - controlled by a central government or authority
vested - having full ownership rights
 to be vested in sb/sth
By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife.
Legislative power is vested in the Grand National Assembly.
veto - power or right to refuse to accept or allow something
 to override a veto
The President has the power of veto over bills passed by Congress.
A two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and in the Senate is required to
override a presidential veto.
vote of confidence - a voting process in which people show support for a person or a group in power
 motion of no confidence
The Sejm shall pass vote of confidence by an absolute majority of votes in the presence of at least half
of the statutory number of Deputies.
warrant – formal and explicit approval
welfare - care provided by the state or another organization for people in need
 social welfare - the well-being of the entire society; various social services provided
by a state for the benefit of its citizens
without prejudice - without affecting any other legal matter