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This article examines the constitutional and statutory regulation of secrecy and disclosure of official information in Sweden, particularly in relation to defence and foreign policy

This book explains the origins, structure and functioning of the European Convention on Human Rights, and its position in the overall system of protection of human rights in Europe. It discusses and analyses the composition, functions and procedure of the Court of Human Rights. It clarifies the scope of each of the rights and freedoms laid down by the Convention by reference to the case law of the Court. It also explains the status and impact of the Convention in Swedish law and in the law of the European Union. It provides a detailed guide to research sources and methodology for those wishing to investigate human rights issues under the Covention in more detail.

The book is written primarily for students of public law, international law and political science, but it can also be of interest to practicing lawyers and others who wish a clear and concise introduction to the Convention.

Boken ger en översikt över Europadomstolens omfattande rättspraxis. Även viktigare konventionsrelaterade avgörande från Högsta domstolen, Högsta förvaltningsdomstolen och EU-domstolen tas upp i boken

This chapter analyzes the Swedish legal frameworks and policy approaches which were taken in order to counter the Covid-19 pandemic in Sweden. It examines, inter alia the social distancing measures that were introduced, testing, contact tracing as well as the Swedish legislators' and Swedish authorities' efforts to balance civil liberties with effective public health measures. The chapter explains why this is so, and the impact that the constitution and the existing legal framework for dealing with pandemics has had on policy choices in Sweden. The first thing as regards the Swedish constitutional context is that there is no provision in the Swedish constitution for the declaration of a state of emergency in peacetime, only in war or where there is an imminent danger of war. The fact that the Swedish constitution is silent on peace time crisis means that the ordinary legislative procedure as a main rule applies also during a crisis.

Detta PM behandlar hur domstolskontroll av lagar och förvaltningsbeslut har fungerat i några andra europeiska länder under det första året av Covid-19 pandemin, dvs mellan februari 2020-mars 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic not only ravaged human bodies but also had profound and possibly enduring effects on the health of political and legal systems, economies and societies. Almost overnight, governments imposed the severest restrictions in modern times on rights and freedoms, elections, parliaments and courts. Legal and political institutions struggled to adapt, creating a catalyst for democratic decline and catastrophic increases in poverty and inequality.

This handbook analyses the global pandemic response through five themes: governance and democracy; human rights; the rule of law; science, public trust and decision making; and states of emergency and exception. Containing 12 thematic commentaries and 25 chapters on countries of diverse size, wealth and experience of COVID-19, it represents the combined effort of more than 50 contributors, including leading scholars and rising voices in the fields of constitutional, international, public health, human rights and comparative law, as well as political science, and science and technology studies.

Taking stock after the onset of global emergency, this book provides essential analysis for politicians, policy-makers, jurists, civil society organisations, academics, students and practitioners at both national and international level on the best, and most concerning, practices adopted in response to COVID-19 – and key insights into how states and multilateral institutions should reform, adapt and prepare for future emergencies.

The Swedish political and legal response to the Covid-19 pandemic is best described as soft in terms of the character of the measures applied, and decentralized in terms of the division of powers and responsibilities. Swedish constitutional law does not provide for a state of emergency in a peace time crisis, such as a pandemic. Instead, the principle of statutory anticipation is used, which means that ordinary laws (with, in some cases, special provisions which can be activated) apply also in a time of crisis, e.g. the Public Order Act (POA), which allows the government to restrict the number of participants in public meetings or organized public events. Where these powers are deemed to be insufficient, the legislative procedure should be sufficiently flexible to allow new powers to be added relatively speedily. However, the events in 2020 showed that this approach suffers from several deficiencies.