USTAVNA NAČELA

Abstract

Constitutional principles are a complex and multi-layered issue that exceeds the boundaries of academic deliberations only on the essence of (constitutional)legal order and the quality of a constitutional text. It raises the question of identifying the fundamental values on which a society rests. In the work, the author gives only basic considerations of this problem, which is not otherwise particularly addressed in Serbian constitutional theory. It begins with the premise that constitutional principles have the appropriate terminological manifestation and internal relationship, which is shaped into a specific structure. As a rule, this structure is not hierarchical, although it has this formal tendency. The author points out that the structure of constitutional principles reflects the internal logic of the constitution and the constitution itself, but also their functional and targeted direction. In this sense, it indicates the difference between the primary (basic, original, supreme) and secondary (derivative, special principles, sub-principles) principles of the constitution. According to the author, all principles of the Serbian constitution can be divided into: general (initial) and three sets of special principles of the constitution, according to their case and matter. Based on an analysis of their contents and structure, it is concluded that these special constitutional principles of the Serbian constitution should not have been separated from "basic" or initial principles. In doing so, the author substantiates the thesis on an insufficiently clear concept under which the principles of the constitution differ from the provisions (norms) of the constitution that are not formally marked as constitutional principles. Based on comparative analysis, it suggests that this kind of "disorientation" is not just a flaw in our current constitution. It can also be recognized in some legal systems that are traditionally cited in theory and practice as an example of constitutional-legal continuity and stability. Thus, in the work, the author referred to the constitutional principles of the US Constitution and the German Basic Law, which structurally, not contentally, differ significantly by approach to constitutional principles.