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.

Official Flag of the United Nations of the Auroran Continent

Treaties

Map of the UNAC

Treaties make up the foundation of Auroran law. Treaties refer to binding agreements among member states. According to the Charter of the UNAC, treaties must be agreed unanimously by member states to pass. 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).

Besides the Charter of the UNAC, other treaties include the following:

• Charter of the Auroran Monetary Fund which establishes the AMF, sets out its powers and duties, provides the basis of its shareholding structure and governs its relationship with the UNAC.

Statute

Aura International Convention Centre, seat of the UNAC Commission, Council and Parliament in Aura, Emberwood Coast

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 statues that exist in the UNAC as follows. Only the Commission of the UNAC can propose ordinary acts. However the Auroran Parliament has committees which scrutinize legislative proposals and recommend amendments to the UNAC Commission prior to the passage of an act. This can help the Auroran Parliament shape the content of legislation.

Ordinary acts

Ordinary acts refer to statutes that control day to day running of transnational issues. This can include intracontinental trade and movement, multilateral scientific cooperation, multilateral food and drug standards, data privacy, environmental protection, fishing and related legislation. As part of the UNAC Charter, all island member states have certain opt-outs from ordinary acts, i.e. some laws do not apply or the government of that island country can choose which parts to obey. This exemption covers issues such as but not limited to food imports, immigration, and marine and land ecology. These acts require a simple majority in the Auroran Parliament and the Council of the UNAC to pass but the Council can overrule the Parliament by passing the act with a 66% majority. Most of the time these acts are either projects that require transnational cooperation or standards and guidelines. They rarely make requirements that affect how member states run their domestic affairs.

Ordinary acts are required for the following actions:

• The admission of new member states (in accordance with Article C).
• The admission of observer states who are defined as states which have the right to send a resident observer to speak at meetings of the Council.
• The appointment and dismissal of the President of the Auroran Commission.
• The appointment and dismissal of the Auroran Commission.
• The appointment and dismissal of the Auroran Electoral Commission.
• The approval of the annual budget.
• The dismissal of a Member of Parliament

Prominent examples include:

• Intracontinental Highway Promotion Act
• Drug Health and Safety Standards Act
• Data Privacy Protection Standards Act

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 unanimous approval by member states. 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 two-thirds majority of the member of the Council to pass. These are acts which affect the composition or function of other branches of the UNAC (without affecting their structure which would require a treaty). These acts can be used to:

• Dissolve the Auroran Parliament and trigger new elections.
• Dismissal of a member of the Auroran Court of Justice
• Expulsion of a member.

It is unclear why the Charter of the UNAC makes a distinction between an Extraordinary act and a security act when they have the same procedures and effect.

Case law

Seat of the Auroran Court of Justice in Andel, Axdel

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.