644 articles
Palestine exception
Palestine exception: term coined by Michael Ratner (2013) for censorship and punishment of pro-Palestinian advocacy, chiefly on US campuses, documented by Palestine Legal and CCR (2015) and intensified after October 2023.
Parliamentary privilege
Parliamentary privilege: the legal immunities of Westminster-style legislatures, their members, and officers, centered on article 9 of the Bill of Rights 1689 and exclusive cognisance, protecting speech in proceedings but not criminal conduct.
Parliamentary sovereignty
Parliamentary sovereignty, or parliamentary supremacy, is the constitutional doctrine that a legislature, notably the UK Parliament, may make or unmake any law and cannot be overridden by courts, with qualifications from the Human Rights Act 1998, devolution, and Commonwealth constitutions.
Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act
The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 (18 U.S.C. §1531), signed November 5, 2003, bans abortions in which a living fetus is partially vaginally delivered before a fatal overt act; Clinton vetoed 1996–97 versions, courts enjoined the 2003 act, and Gonzales v. Carhart (2007) upheld it.
Passports of the European Union
Passports of the European Union are national passports issued by the 27 EU member states in a common burgundy format, harmonized by a 1981 resolution and a 2004 biometrics regulation.
Patriot Act
The USA PATRIOT Act (P.L. 107-56, October 2001) expanded U.S. surveillance, records, and money laundering powers after 9/11; Section 215's bulk phone metadata program was struck down as unauthorized in ACLU v. Clapper (2015).
Paul Rusesabagina
Paul Rusesabagina, Hutu former manager of Kigali's Hotel des Mille Collines, credited with sheltering over 1,200 people in the 1994 genocide and inspiring Hotel Rwanda; later MRCD opposition founder, convicted of terrorism in 2021, released 2023.
Peerage of Scotland
Peerage of Scotland: the division of the British peerage of titles created before the 1707 Union, with ranks from duke to Lord of Parliament; 16 representative peers sat from 1707 until the Peerage Act 1963 admitted all Scottish peers.
Peerage of the United Kingdom
Peerage of the United Kingdom: noble titles created since 1801, the newest division of the British peerage. Five ranks from duke to baron; hereditary or life; life peers under the 1958 Act dominate the House of Lords.
Peerages in the United Kingdom
Peerages in the United Kingdom: Crown-created dignities in five ranks (duke to baron), hereditary or life. Life peers under the 1958 Act dominate the Lords; the 2026 Act removed the last hereditary members.
PEN Ukraine
PEN Ukraine (Український ПЕН) is a Ukrainian cultural and human rights organization of writers and journalists, founded in 1989, that defends freedom of speech and authors' rights.
Peruvian Constituent Assembly of 1978–1979
The Peruvian Constituent Assembly of 1978–1979 (Asamblea Constituyente 1978–1979) was the elected body, presided over by Víctor Raúl Haya de la Torre, that wrote the 1979 Constitution of Peru, restoring civilian rule.
Peruvian Constitution of 1823
The Peruvian Constitution of 1823 was the first constitution of independent Peru, establishing a republic with a strong legislature; suspended under Bolívar, restored in 1827, and replaced in 1828.
Peruvian Constitution of 1856
The Peruvian Constitution of 1856, promulgated by Ramón Castilla, was a liberal charter in force until 1860 and the first to provide for direct popular election of the president.
Peruvian Constitution of 1860
The Peruvian Constitution of 1860 (Constitución Política del Perú), promulgated by Ramón Castilla as a conservative reform of the 1856 charter, remained in force until 1920.
Peruvian Constitution of 1933
The Peruvian Constitution of 1933, the Constitución Política del Perú, was promulgated by President Luis M. Sánchez Cerro on 9 April 1933 and remained in force until 1980.
Peruvian Constitution of 1979
The Peruvian Constitution of 1979 (Constitución Política del Perú de 1979) was Peru's fundamental law, drafted by the 1978 Constituent Assembly and in force from 1980 until 1993.
Peruvian Constitution of 1993
The Peruvian Constitution of 1993, drafted by the Democratic Constituent Congress after President Fujimori's 1992 autogolpe, is Peru's current fundamental law, ratified by referendum on 31 October 1993.
Peter Barton Hutt
Peter Barton Hutt (1934–2026) was an American lawyer who practiced food and drug law at Covington & Burling for six decades, served as FDA Chief Counsel from 1971 to 1975, and created the nutrition label.
Philipp Zorn
Philipp Zorn (1850–1928) was a German jurist and one of the leading constitutional law teachers of the German Empire, holding chairs at Bern, Königsberg, and Bonn.
Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation
PAGCOR (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation), state gaming regulator-operator under the Philippine Office of the President; created 1977, chartered by PD 1869; record Php112 billion 2024 revenues; banned all POGOs effective December 15, 2024.
Philippine nationality law
Philippine nationality law governs who are Filipino citizens under the 1935, 1973, and 1987 Constitutions, Commonwealth Act 473 naturalization, Commonwealth Act 63 loss rules, and RA 9225 retention and reacquisition of citizenship.
Pitt's India Act
Pitt's India Act (East India Company Act 1784), passed under William Pitt the Younger, created the Board of Control for political affairs, established dual control with the Court of Directors, subordinated the presidencies, and lasted until 1858.
Polish Ombudsman
The Polish Ombudsman (Polish: Rzecznik Praw Obywatelskich, RPO) is Poland's independent constitutional organ for safeguarding the rights and freedoms of citizens, created by a 1987 act and operative since 1988.
Political union
Political union: states combining governing power under common institutions, from confederations of sovereign states to federations; the EU (27 members, ~450 million people) is the leading example, with Article 50 exit rights.
Posse Comitatus Act
Posse Comitatus Act (18 U.S.C. §1385), an 1878 U.S. criminal statute barring federal military forces from domestic law enforcement except when authorized by the Constitution or Congress; principal exception is the Insurrection Act; amended in 2021 to cover all service branches.
Powers of the president of the United States
Powers of the president of the United States: the Article II authorities of the U.S. presidency, including commander in chief role, pardons, appointments, treaties, veto, executive orders, removal power, and their checks.
Preamble
Preamble: the introductory statement of a constitution stating its history, sovereignty source, goals, and national identity; 74 percent of 50 sampled democracies have one; legal status ranges from ceremonial to substantive.
Preamble to the Constitution of India
The Preamble to the Constitution of India, drafted under B.R. Ambedkar from Nehru's Objectives Resolution and adopted 26 November 1949, declares popular sovereignty and the goals of justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity; amended in 1976 to add socialist, secular, and integrity.
Preamble to the United States Constitution
The Preamble to the United States Constitution, opening "We the People of the United States," states six goals of the 1787 Constitution. Drafted largely by Gouverneur Morris, it grants little direct legal force but guides interpretation.