Glossary.

Short, plain definitions of the legal and political terms used across the publication.

Constitutional court: A specialised court with exclusive power to review whether laws comply with the constitution.
Dissent: An opinion written by a judge who disagrees with the majority. It does not change the outcome but records the disagreement.
Holding: The part of a judgment that decides the legal question before the court and binds the parties.
Judicial review: The power of a court to examine whether a law or official act is compatible with the constitution or a higher rule.
Natural justice: Minimum standards of fair decision-making: hear both sides, and let no one judge their own case.
Parliamentary scrutiny: The ways a legislature examines and questions the government: committees, questions, debates and inquiries.
Polyarchy: Robert Dahl's term for real-world democracies that meet a set of institutional conditions, from free elections to free expression.
Reasoning: The explanation a court gives for its decision; later courts and commentators argue mostly about this part.