Immaterial public order: Legal response to social crisis?

Abstract

This contribution aims to analyze the concept of the immaterial public order and its use in law and jurisprudence in the context of social crises. It understands this concept as an ancient response becoming part of the formalized legal order, to the societies in crises. The different legal orders must respond such challenges as the globalization, terrorism or financial crises of nowadays. The paper proposes to understand the immaterial public order as an instrument of law that helps the cooperation of the different normative orders as e.g. of the domestic legal order and the European law or international law. But this concept is useful not only to regulate the relationship between different legal orders but also to settle the relationship between the legislator and the constitutional judge. The analysis offers a general doctrinal approach while focusing on the French case.