Switzerland is not only one of the oldest democracies in the world, but also an enduring model of peaceful multiethnic policy, characterized by a Constitution that is constant flux. The new Federal Constitution of the Swiss Confederation took effect on January 1, 2000; and it is with the intention of staying abreast of the constitutional changes and of the case law of the Federal Court that the authors have prepared the current volume. A general introduction of the constitutional history and the foundations of the Swiss political system are followed by the following issues:
- Sources of Swiss Constitutional Law;
- Organisational Design of the Swiss Confederation;
- Federalism in General and the Position of the Cantons and the Municipalities in the Swiss Confederation;
- Citizenship, Fundamental Rights and Liberties and their Judicial Protection, Protection of Minorities, Judicial Control of Administrative Action;
- Treaty and Foreign Affairs Powers, Taxing and Spending Powers, t Relationship between the State and the Church.