Auroran law
Auroran law refers to the legally binding customs, treaties and laws of the United Nations of the Auroran Continent. This terminology specifically excludes the domestic laws passed by member states. The foundation of Auroran law is the Charter of the United Nations of the Auroran Continent, which provides for the establishment of the UNAC and lays out its most basic functions and structures and relationship with member states. From this Charter, member states may enact treaties which further affect their relationship with the UNAC and each other. In turn, the Auroran Parliament and Council of the UNAC only have the power to pass laws which conform to the treaties and Charter of the UNAC. Some of these laws have direct implications on the internal governance of member states such that the UNAC is arguably a quasi-confederation.
Treaties
Treaties make up the foundation of Auroran law. Treaties refer to binding agreements among member states. According to the Charter of the UNAC, member states are only bound by the treaties to which they are participant. For this reason, treaties take an incredibly long time to pass and comprise a small portion of UNAC law. Nevertheless, treaties of the UNAC are by far the most powerful documents of the UNAC as they amend or supplement the Charter and bind UNAC member states to UNAC authority. Treaties require the consent of the executive branches of the member states and the ratification of their respective legislatures to pass (in line with their laws and customs).
Statute
The Auroran Parliament and the Council of the UNAC comprise the Legislature of the UNAC. The Auroran Parliament is elected once every four years by the citizens of UNAC member states by single-member constituencies. Only parties registered at the continental level can run in elections. Thus, most political parties in members states form part of a larger transnational political party such as the Auroran Socialist Democratic Party. In contrast, the Council of the UNAC is composed of Representatives from member states as appointed by their governments.
There are three types of statutes that exist in the UNAC as follows. Any member of the Commission of the UNAC or the Council of the UNAC can propose acts. However the Auroran Parliament has committees which scrutinize legislative proposals and recommend amendments to the UNAC Commission or Council prior to the passage of an act. This can help the Auroran Parliament shape the content of legislation.
Ordinary acts
Ordinary acts refer to acts that are not in their own specially designated class. Like other types of acts only members of the Council and the Commission may propose them. The Parliament can debate these acts and suggest amendments before the final version is passed.
The Charter designates a set of actions that require the passage of an act. However there are some actions that require the approval of a majority of the Auroran Parliament and the Council and there are actions which require only the approval of the Council.
Actions which require only the approval of the Council are as follows:
- Admission of member and observer states
- Appointment and impeachment of Commissioners
Actions which require the approval of both the approval of the Parliament and Council are as follows:
- Appointment and dismissal of the President of the UNAC Commission
- Impeachment of a member of the Auroran Parliament
- Creation and dissolution of portfolios of the Commission.
- Passage of the annual budget of the UNAC.
- Any other matter that is not restricted by law. This can include passing legislation on joint projects and initiatives, setting guidelines and standards, and leveraging the resources of the UNAC for a specific purpose or making regulations for the UNAC specifically that do not fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of another entity.
If a state of emergency is in effect, the Council can unilaterally pass acts as long as they are temporary. These temporary acts are as binding as ordinary acts, but they have an expiration date. This means it does not need the approval of the Auroran Parliament or have to wait for its opinion.
Security acts
Security acts are types of emergency acts which allow the Council of the UNAC respond to or prevent the escalation of military conflict such as a foreign invasion, war between member states or a war within a member state. Security acts require 75% approval by the Council. By passing a Security Act, the Council of the UNAC can do the following things:
- Impose a blockade or no fly-zone over a member state
- Impose a state of emergency that allows for the passage of Temporary Acts
- Suspend a member state.
Temporary acts
Temporary acts refer to acts that require the approval of a simple majority of members of the Council of the UNAC. Temporary acts can be passed by the Council of the UNAC without the approval of the Auroran Parliament only if the Council of the UNAC declares a state of emergency. Temporary acts have an in-built expiration date. They are used as temporary relief or response to an emergency such as a war or a natural disaster. They allow for the mobilization and redirection of funds that would otherwise require a formal budget and other appropriations legislation. Emergency acts can also suspend the implementation of ordinary laws to enable member states to redirect resources and political capital to responding to a crisis. This type of act arose directly as a response to the failure of the Auroran Continental Assembly to respond to the Auroran-Pacific War of 2017 and it was also inspired by the Cyclone Mable disaster of 2018.
Extraordinary acts
Extraordinary acts can only be passed by the Council of the UNAC.They require a unanimous vote of the members of the Council to pass.
These acts are required to:
- Dissolve the Auroran Parliament and trigger new elections.
- Dismissal of a member of the Auroran Court of Justice
- Expulsion of a member.
However, extraordinary acts can be used to do anything as long as it does not conflict with the Charter or a treaty. This means that the Council can make any decision through an Extraordinary act. This means that the opinion or approval of other bodies is not necessary if the Council passes an extraordinary act. These acts are not temporary and they are not situational. For example, the Council could theoretically appoint the President of the UNAC Commission without the approval of the Auroran Parliament if it passed an extraordinary act.
Case law
The Auroran Court of Justice has the power to interpret and apply the laws and treaties of the UNAC. The Charter states that the Auroran Court of Justice can strike down acts which go against the Charter and treaties. Furthermore, it states that the ACJ must follow the principle of stare decisis.
Stare decisis means that the interpretation of the ACJ on the application of the law to a particular set of facts is binding on all cases with similar facts. Thus, the ratio decidendi of a judgement delivered by the ACJ becomes part of Auroran jurisprudence. Case law cannot be amended. It can only be overturned and replaced either by being rendered ineffective by the passage of statute or a new treaty or through a future sitting of the ACJ deciding that a specific case law is no longer applicable. It must be noted that the ratio decidendi must relate only the facts of the case.
However the ACJ can give an opinion on matters outside of the case called a obiter dictum. The obiter dictum is the part of the judgement that is not binding. It can have persuasive effect, but cannot take the place of case law or be treated as case law. The minority judgements of the ACJ are not binding and they are treated as a type of obiter dictum.
Convention
Convention refers to longstanding practices and traditions that have legal implications. Convention is a sui generis concept in that it is not law per se but can be used as a valid defence.
In a case before the ACJ, it can be argued that there was a reasonable expectation or implied understanding due to the existence of convention. For instance in a country like Great Morstaybishlia certain conventions are not formally written but have the force of law such as that the King must abide by the advise of his Ministers in the exercise of Royal Prerogatives vested in the Crown. Thus, conventions can be as important as written law. In some cases written law assumes that conventions exist. In the same way, convention can be useful as an argument in cases before the ACJ.
Because the UNAC is much younger than its member states, it does not have many conventions, however there are unwritten conventions among member states such as allowing the merchant ships of foreign nations to moor at their ports of they are in distress. There is no formal process by which convention arises and there is no formal process by which it is amended or terminated except through the passage of time.
Thus, the ACJ must apply the following tests to determine that an enforceable or valid convention exists:
- The reasonableness test requires that the convention's expectations are reasonable, i.e. they are valid, fair and practicable.
- The endurance test requires that the convention has survived for a long time. This can vary by circumstance.
- The consistency test requires that the convention is applied consistently under similar circumstances with little deviation.
- The conformity test requires that the convention must not contradict domestic or Auroran laws.
Conventions can be rendered irrelevant by the passage of time; the circumstances under which they existed are impractical. For instance if there is a convention that sailors show their astrolabe at the aft of a vessel, this convention is no longer relevant given that modern ships do not use astrolabes. Convention can be rendered irrelevant or formalised by the passage of new laws.