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The dissertation examines the recent transformations in the modes of governing the activities of psychiatric hospitals. More specifically, it explores the role of two influential reform processes in France: the introduction of judicial reviews of involuntary commitment and the evolution of the ways public psychiatric institutions are funded. Unequally successful and traversed by heterogeneous institutional logics, from law and economics respectively, both changes aim to shape norms of the legitimate functioning of psychiatric hospitals. Hence, they contribute to changes in professional practices and organisational dynamics. This sociological work draws on interviews, conducted with medical and judicial professionals and policy makers, a set of ethnographic observations carried out in psychiatric hospitals and judicial hearings, as well as a review of written sources. The dissertation analyses the elaboration of public policies in psychiatry and their implementation, focusing on the role of psychiatrists and their interactions with other professionals, particularly in the legal field, as well as with institutional, national or regional actors. This work concludes that psychiatrists have been relatively dispossessed of control over the process of reform of the psychiatric institution over the last decades. However, the deprivation is masked by their ability to partly control the conditions of the implementation of these policies. ; La thèse étudie les transformations récentes des modes de gouvernement de l'activité psychiatrique hospitalière. Elle explore plus singulièrement le rôle de deux processus réformateurs influents : l'introduction du contrôle judiciaire des hospitalisations sans consentement et l'évolution du mode de financement des établissements publics en psychiatrie. Inégalement abouties et traversées par des logiques institutionnelles hétérogènes, respectivement fondées sur le droit et sur l'économie, ces évolutions partagent le projet normatif de devenir des références légitimes pour l'hôpital ...

International audience ; Law as integrity as a dworkinian theory is mainly a theory of legal argumentation.The judicial argumentation is controversial and not a theoretical demonstration. It aims at the discovery of one best legal answer as far as legal disagreements are not merely verbel but genuine disagreements: they are argumentatin around different conceptions of the same concept. But the proposition of one best legal answer never would have the consequence to stop the process or argumentation.

International audience ; Law as integrity as a dworkinian theory is mainly a theory of legal argumentation.The judicial argumentation is controversial and not a theoretical demonstration. It aims at the discovery of one best legal answer as far as legal disagreements are not merely verbel but genuine disagreements: they are argumentatin around different conceptions of the same concept. But the proposition of one best legal answer never would have the consequence to stop the process or argumentation.

The ethnographic survey shows that the truth in the asise court is built by obtaining adjusted evidence until the end of the proceedings. The hearing allows the accused and the complainant to comment on the facts and to understand the meaning of the sentence. This process of truth emergence applies not only to ordinary cases but also to terrorism cases. In both cases, the judges' conviction is formed on the basis of the adversarial debate and the evidence obtained at the hearing. Whereas the taking of evidence is part of the experimental method (observation of facts and verification of assumptions raised by the facts) the decision of the judges results from the interpretation of that evidence. After describing the process of emergence of evidence at the hearing, we will show that a case decided at first instance and on appeal can produce two judicial truths, two different judgments. ; The ethnographic research shows that the truth in criminal court (the court of assizes) is provided by the taking of adjusted evidence until the end of the proceedings. The hearing allows the accused and the complainant to point out their facts and to understand the meaning of the sentence. This process of the emergence of the truth applies to ordinary law cases but also to terrorist cases. In both cases, the judges' deep(intimate) conviction is formed from the debate and the evidence obtained at the hearing. While obtaining evidence is the experimental method (observation of the facts and verification of the hypotheses raised by the facts) the judges' decision results from the interpretation of this evidence. After describing the process of the emergence of evidence at the hearing, we will show that a case tried at trial and on appeal can produce two judicial truths, two different judgments. ; The ethnographic survey shows that the truth in the asise court is built by obtaining adjusted evidence until the end of the proceedings. The hearing allows the accused and the complainant to comment on the facts and to understand the ...

The dissertation examines the recent transformations in the modes of governing the activities of psychiatric hospitals. More specifically, it explores the role of two influential reform processes in France: the introduction of judicial reviews of involuntary commitment and the evolution of the ways public psychiatric institutions are funded. Unequally successful and traversed by heterogeneous institutional logics, from law and economics respectively, both changes aim to shape norms of the legitimate functioning of psychiatric hospitals. Hence, they contribute to changes in professional practices and organisational dynamics. This sociological work draws on interviews, conducted with medical and judicial professionals and policy makers, a set of ethnographic observations carried out in psychiatric hospitals and judicial hearings, as well as a review of written sources. The dissertation analyses the elaboration of public policies in psychiatry and their implementation, focusing on the role of psychiatrists and their interactions with other professionals, particularly in the legal field, as well as with institutional, national or regional actors. This work concludes that psychiatrists have been relatively dispossessed of control over the process of reform of the psychiatric institution over the last decades. However, the deprivation is masked by their ability to partly control the conditions of the implementation of these policies. ; La thèse étudie les transformations récentes des modes de gouvernement de l'activité psychiatrique hospitalière. Elle explore plus singulièrement le rôle de deux processus réformateurs influents : l'introduction du contrôle judiciaire des hospitalisations sans consentement et l'évolution du mode de financement des établissements publics en psychiatrie. Inégalement abouties et traversées par des logiques institutionnelles hétérogènes, respectivement fondées sur le droit et sur l'économie, ces évolutions partagent le projet normatif de devenir des références légitimes pour l'hôpital psychiatrique, non sans effets sur ses pratiques et ses dynamiques professionnelles ou organisationnelles. Ce travail sociologique mobilise de nombreux entretiens, conduits auprès d'acteurs professionnels ou en charge de la régulation, un ensemble d'observations ethnographiques réalisées dans des établissements spécialisés, notamment lors d'audiences judiciaires, ainsi qu'un dépouillement de sources écrites. La thèse analyse la fabrique des politiques publiques en psychiatrie et leur mise en œuvre, en prêtant attention au rôle des psychiatres et à leurs interactions avec d'autres acteurs professionnels, dans le domaine du droit en particulier, ainsi qu'avec des acteurs institutionnels, nationaux ou régionaux notamment. La thèse conclut à une relative dépossession des psychiatres dans les processus de réforme de l'institution psychiatrique au cours des dernières décennies, euphémisée par leur capacité à contrôler en partie les conditions de la mise en œuvre de ces évolutions.

The dissertation examines the recent transformations in the modes of governing the activities of psychiatric hospitals. More specifically, it explores the role of two influential reform processes in France: the introduction of judicial reviews of involuntary commitment and the evolution of the ways public psychiatric institutions are funded. Unequally successful and traversed by heterogeneous institutional logics, from law and economics respectively, both changes aim to shape norms of the legitimate functioning of psychiatric hospitals. Hence, they contribute to changes in professional practices and organisational dynamics. This sociological work draws on interviews, conducted with medical and judicial professionals and policy makers, a set of ethnographic observations carried out in psychiatric hospitals and judicial hearings, as well as a review of written sources. The dissertation analyses the elaboration of public policies in psychiatry and their implementation, focusing on the role of psychiatrists and their interactions with other professionals, particularly in the legal field, as well as with institutional, national or regional actors. This work concludes that psychiatrists have been relatively dispossessed of control over the process of reform of the psychiatric institution over the last decades. However, the deprivation is masked by their ability to partly control the conditions of the implementation of these policies. ; La thèse étudie les transformations récentes des modes de gouvernement de l'activité psychiatrique hospitalière. Elle explore plus singulièrement le rôle de deux processus réformateurs influents : l'introduction du contrôle judiciaire des hospitalisations sans consentement et l'évolution du mode de financement des établissements publics en psychiatrie. Inégalement abouties et traversées par des logiques institutionnelles hétérogènes, respectivement fondées sur le droit et sur l'économie, ces évolutions partagent le projet normatif de devenir des références légitimes pour l'hôpital psychiatrique, non sans effets sur ses pratiques et ses dynamiques professionnelles ou organisationnelles. Ce travail sociologique mobilise de nombreux entretiens, conduits auprès d'acteurs professionnels ou en charge de la régulation, un ensemble d'observations ethnographiques réalisées dans des établissements spécialisés, notamment lors d'audiences judiciaires, ainsi qu'un dépouillement de sources écrites. La thèse analyse la fabrique des politiques publiques en psychiatrie et leur mise en œuvre, en prêtant attention au rôle des psychiatres et à leurs interactions avec d'autres acteurs professionnels, dans le domaine du droit en particulier, ainsi qu'avec des acteurs institutionnels, nationaux ou régionaux notamment. La thèse conclut à une relative dépossession des psychiatres dans les processus de réforme de l'institution psychiatrique au cours des dernières décennies, euphémisée par leur capacité à contrôler en partie les conditions de la mise en œuvre de ces évolutions.

For more than a decade, the Central African Republic (CAR) and the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire (RCI or the Ivory Coast) are going through serious military-political conflicts which have been accentuated for the Central African Republic in 2012 and for RCI in 2011. These crises, which in most cases are rooted in poor governance and lack of political will have a common denominator: significant material damage and loss of life. Serious crimes in the hierarchy of horror have been committed (war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes of genocide). Given the seriousness of these crimes that profoundly transcend human consciousness, both countries have engaged in transitional justice processes, through judicial and non-judicial measures to deal with their painful past and reconcile divided populations and communities. How to integrate justice into a more global strategy of the transitional process for national reconciliation in favour of a new democratic future?It is true that the repression of these crimes by the Central African and Ivorian courts, the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Special Criminal Court (SPC) in CAR or under universal jurisdiction is a priority objective pursued by both countries. However, classical justice has proved incapable of judging all the authors, as their number is important and the facts they are accused of are serious. This is why the Central African and Ivorian authorities have considered complimentary mechanisms to criminal justice aimed at restoring living together among the divided populations, materialized by the creation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (CDVR). It is responsible for establishing a historical truth about the crimes committed in order to definitively turn the page. Apart from this classical institution of national reconciliation, other structures have been created, either to fill the gaps of previous initiatives or to find other new areas. Religion has also played an important role; either it promotes religious tolerance, acceptance of differences ...

Regulatory and legislative texts must be codified for two reasons: to assert the coherence of the judicial corpus and facilitate its appropriation by the citizens. The construction of the rural code is an interesting example of such a process, demonstrating the importance of the social, political and economic context, particularly in the first part of our presentation which covers the period from the French Revolution to the end of the First Empire. This approach will be confirmed later in the second part of our presentation, with a description of the codification process recently completed, particularly on matters of veterinary public health. ; La codification des textes législatifs et réglementaires répond à une double nécessité, affirmer la cohérence du corpus juridique et faciliter son appropriation par le citoyen. A ce titre, l'histoire de la construction du Code rural mérite d'être rappelée. Elle permettra d'observer l'importance du contexte politique, social et économique, en particulier pour la première partie de cette présentation, qui va de la Révolution française à la fin du Premier Empire. Il sera possible, dans une seconde partie, de confirmer cette approche en se référant aux travaux de codification qui viennent de s'achever, en particulier dans le domaine de la santé publique vétérinaire.

The refugee determination process is one of the most complex judicial functions in our societies. Decision makers involved in this process require a sufficient knowledge of the cultural, social, and political environment of the country of origin, a capacity to bear the psychological weight of difficult hearings and potentially life-threatening decisions, and an ability to deal with complex legal issues and evidence. In Canada, despite a relatively broad recognition rate and wide interpretation of the international refugee definition, dissatisfaction with the decision-making process at the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) has been expressed by numerous actors as well as by the general public. The following report examines the nature and causes of discord between the different actors involved in this process, including IRB board members and refugee claim officers on the one hand, and professionals such as lawyers, doctors, and expert witnesses on the other. Using a methodological framework that includes both quantitative and qualitative approaches, the authors of this multidisciplinary research project define a set of parameters and variables through which three critical dimensions of the refugee determination process—cultural, psychological, and legal—are explored. Data for the study consist of forty problematic cases referred to the research team by lawyers and other professionals; ten of the cases, which include cassettes and transcripts of hearings, were analyzed in depth by experts in the three respective fields of study. The results indicate numerous problems affecting decisionmaking based on legal factors (difficulties in evaluating evidence, assessing credibility, conducting hearings, and writing decisions), psychological factors (difficulties in coping with vicarious traumatization and emotional reactions), and cultural factors (poor knowledge of the political situation in countries of origin, false representations of daily life in war-torn countries, and cultural misunderstandings or insensitivity). ...

Since 1960s,international donors and then NGOs began to take partin the promotion and realisation of judicial reforms in developing countries. Initially reluctantto work in such aregalianfield as justice, international development actors justified their intervention by economic development needs and then through the concepts of good governance, universal human rights and the rule of law as an essential pre-condition for democratization and the functioning of the free market.Despite increasing efforts, sector as wide as the judicial sector remains difficult to reform because of the multitude and complexity of areas, but also the lack of legitimacy of donors in the countries of operation. To address this last point, but also in the broader context of the reorientation of development aid in the service of the fight against poverty, donors have encouraged local civil society to participate inthe justice sector reform.Kyrgyzstan, former Republic of the Soviet Union whichaccessed unintentionally to independence in 1991 did not avoidthis process. Legacy of the communist era, the Kyrgyz judicial system has been little reformed since independence and represents a significant number of failures. Strongly dependent on the executive power, corrupted and in chronic lack of budget, the Kyrgyz judicial system has failed to play the role ofanimpartial arbiter which he has been appointed. Thus, it contributed to the strengthening of the excessive power of two presidents, the concentration of wealth in the hands of a few and the impoverishment of everyone else. The failure of the judicial system, combined with other factorshas led to two revolutions (2005 and 2010) in Kyrgyzstan and has created a volatile security situation. At the end of the second revolution, the government decided to take seriously the demands of people for justice and after the adoption of the new constitution,heinitiated judicial reforms. This opens an opportunity for international and local development actors to impose their vision of the judiciary. So Secours Catholique, French association of 1901 law, with its local long-time partner Citizens against Corruption takes this opportunity and intends to propose its view in at least two of the judicial reform process: the legislation humanization through penitentiary reform (especially concerning persons sentenced to life) and the development of juvenile justice.Citizens against Corruption through adouble action: project onthe field and advocacy, intends to impose themself as an important actor of the justice system. This important place which representatives of Kyrgyz civil society are occupying comes from the mode of formation of the civil society which was created in Kyrgyzstan after its independence in an environment that was veryopen to international development intervention. ; Depuis les années 60, les bailleurs de fonds et ensuite les ONG ont commencé à participer à la promotion et à l'implantation des réformes judiciaires dans les pays en voie de développement. D'abord réticentes à intervenir dans un domaine de l'Etat aussi régalien que la justice, les acteurs internationaux du développement justifient leur intervention par le besoin d'un développement économique et ensuite à travers les concepts de bonne gouvernance, des droits de l'homme universels et de l'État de droit comme une condition préalable nécessaire à la démocratisation et au bon fonctionnement du libre marché. Malgré des efforts croissants, un secteur aussi large que le secteur judiciaire demeure difficile à réformer à cause de la multitude et de la complexité des domaines d'intervention, mais aussi du manque de légitimité des bailleurs dans les pays d'intervention. Pour remédier à ce dernier point, mais aussi dans le cadre plus général de la réorientation de l'aide au développement à la lutte contre la pauvreté, les bailleurs ont encouragé la société civile locale à participer à la réforme du secteur judiciaire. Ce processus n'a pas échappé au Kirghizstan, l'ancienne République de l'Union Soviétique qui a accédé, sans le vouloir, à l'indépendance en 1991. Héritage de l'époque communiste, le système judiciaire kirghize n'a été que peu réformé depuis l'indépendance et représente un nombre important de défaillances. Fortement dépendant de l'exécutif, corrompu et en manque chronique de budget, le système judiciaire kirghize n'est pas parvenu à jouer le rôle d'arbitre impartial qui lui a été désigné. Ainsi, il a contribué au renforcement démesuré du pouvoir des deux présidents consécutifs, à la concentration des richesses dans les mains de quelques-uns et à l'appauvrissement de tous les autres. L'échec du système judiciaire, combiné avec d'autres facteurs, a donc conduit à deux révolutions au Kirghizstan (2005 et 2010) et a créé une situation de sécurité instable. A l'issue de la deuxième révolution, le gouvernement décide de prendre au sérieux les demandes du peuple pour plus de justice et après avoir adopté une nouvelle constitution, initie les réformes judiciaires. Cela ouvre une possibilité aux acteurs du développement internationaux et locaux d'imposer leur vision du système judiciaire. Ainsi, le Secours Catholique, association française de loi 1901, avec l'aide de son partenaire local de long date Citoyens contre la Corruption s'est invité dans ce processus et entend proposer sa vision dans au moins deux étapes de la réforme judiciaire: l'humanisation de la législation passant par la réforme pénitentiaire (concernant tout particulièrement les personnes condamnées à vie) et le développement de la justice adaptée aux mineurs. A travers sa double action de projet sur le terrain et de plaidoyer, Citoyens contre la Corruption compte s'imposer en tant qu'acteur important dans un domaine de l'État comme la justice, généralement très régalien. Cette place importante qu'occupent alors les représentants de la société civile kirghize provient du mode de formation de cette dernière qui s'est créée au Kirghizstan après son indépendance dans un environnement alors très ouvert à l'intervention internationale au nom du développement.

Since 1960s,international donors and then NGOs began to take partin the promotion and realisation of judicial reforms in developing countries. Initially reluctantto work in such aregalianfield as justice, international development actors justified their intervention by economic development needs and then through the concepts of good governance, universal human rights and the rule of law as an essential pre-condition for democratization and the functioning of the free market.Despite increasing efforts, sector as wide as the judicial sector remains difficult to reform because of the multitude and complexity of areas, but also the lack of legitimacy of donors in the countries of operation. To address this last point, but also in the broader context of the reorientation of development aid in the service of the fight against poverty, donors have encouraged local civil society to participate inthe justice sector reform.Kyrgyzstan, former Republic of the Soviet Union whichaccessed unintentionally to independence in 1991 did not avoidthis process. Legacy of the communist era, the Kyrgyz judicial system has been little reformed since independence and represents a significant number of failures. Strongly dependent on the executive power, corrupted and in chronic lack of budget, the Kyrgyz judicial system has failed to play the role ofanimpartial arbiter which he has been appointed. Thus, it contributed to the strengthening of the excessive power of two presidents, the concentration of wealth in the hands of a few and the impoverishment of everyone else. The failure of the judicial system, combined with other factorshas led to two revolutions (2005 and 2010) in Kyrgyzstan and has created a volatile security situation. At the end of the second revolution, the government decided to take seriously the demands of people for justice and after the adoption of the new constitution,heinitiated judicial reforms. This opens an opportunity for international and local development actors to impose their vision of the judiciary. So Secours Catholique, French association of 1901 law, with its local long-time partner Citizens against Corruption takes this opportunity and intends to propose its view in at least two of the judicial reform process: the legislation humanization through penitentiary reform (especially concerning persons sentenced to life) and the development of juvenile justice.Citizens against Corruption through adouble action: project onthe field and advocacy, intends to impose themself as an important actor of the justice system. This important place which representatives of Kyrgyz civil society are occupying comes from the mode of formation of the civil society which was created in Kyrgyzstan after its independence in an environment that was veryopen to international development intervention. ; Depuis les années 60, les bailleurs de fonds et ensuite les ONG ont commencé à participer à la promotion et à l'implantation des réformes judiciaires dans les pays en voie de développement. D'abord réticentes à intervenir dans un domaine de l'Etat aussi régalien que la justice, les acteurs internationaux du développement justifient leur intervention par le besoin d'un développement économique et ensuite à travers les concepts de bonne gouvernance, des droits de l'homme universels et de l'État de droit comme une condition préalable nécessaire à la démocratisation et au bon fonctionnement du libre marché. Malgré des efforts croissants, un secteur aussi large que le secteur judiciaire demeure difficile à réformer à cause de la multitude et de la complexité des domaines d'intervention, mais aussi du manque de légitimité des bailleurs dans les pays d'intervention. Pour remédier à ce dernier point, mais aussi dans le cadre plus général de la réorientation de l'aide au développement à la lutte contre la pauvreté, les bailleurs ont encouragé la société civile locale à participer à la réforme du secteur judiciaire. Ce processus n'a pas échappé au Kirghizstan, l'ancienne République de l'Union Soviétique qui a accédé, sans le vouloir, à l'indépendance en 1991. Héritage de l'époque communiste, le système judiciaire kirghize n'a été que peu réformé depuis l'indépendance et représente un nombre important de défaillances. Fortement dépendant de l'exécutif, corrompu et en manque chronique de budget, le système judiciaire kirghize n'est pas parvenu à jouer le rôle d'arbitre impartial qui lui a été désigné. Ainsi, il a contribué au renforcement démesuré du pouvoir des deux présidents consécutifs, à la concentration des richesses dans les mains de quelques-uns et à l'appauvrissement de tous les autres. L'échec du système judiciaire, combiné avec d'autres facteurs, a donc conduit à deux révolutions au Kirghizstan (2005 et 2010) et a créé une situation de sécurité instable. A l'issue de la deuxième révolution, le gouvernement décide de prendre au sérieux les demandes du peuple pour plus de justice et après avoir adopté une nouvelle constitution, initie les réformes judiciaires. Cela ouvre une possibilité aux acteurs du développement internationaux et locaux d'imposer leur vision du système judiciaire. Ainsi, le Secours Catholique, association française de loi 1901, avec l'aide de son partenaire local de long date Citoyens contre la Corruption s'est invité dans ce processus et entend proposer sa vision dans au moins deux étapes de la réforme judiciaire: l'humanisation de la législation passant par la réforme pénitentiaire (concernant tout particulièrement les personnes condamnées à vie) et le développement de la justice adaptée aux mineurs. A travers sa double action de projet sur le terrain et de plaidoyer, Citoyens contre la Corruption compte s'imposer en tant qu'acteur important dans un domaine de l'État comme la justice, généralement très régalien. Cette place importante qu'occupent alors les représentants de la société civile kirghize provient du mode de formation de cette dernière qui s'est créée au Kirghizstan après son indépendance dans un environnement alors très ouvert à l'intervention internationale au nom du développement.

The evolution of customs and data consumption generate increasing needs for Internet speeds. Optical fiber and its network is, thereby, an adopted solution in France in order to meet its objective, the Very High Speed for all in 2022. The installation of an optical fiber network constitutes a real networking of the territory. Buried or overhead, the optical fibre network is both located on public domain and private properties. Legal status of the network will be determined during its creation following the nature of the crossed fund. Severals actors will have an influence during the network's installation, in particular the legislator and the land surveyor. The latter may also intervene during the network's creation and in the context of de facto situations, to define a legal framework for installations in a regularization process. ; L'évolution des moeurs et de la consommation de données entraîne des besoins croissants de débits internet. La fibre optique et son réseau est ainsi une solution adoptée en France pour répondre à son objectif, le Très Haut Débit pour tous à l'horizon 2022. L'installation d'un réseau de fibre optique constitue un véritable maillage du territoire. Enterré ou aérien, le réseau de fibre optique est implanté aussi bien sur le domaine public que sur des propriétés privées. Le régime juridique applicable à ces réseaux va ainsi être déterminé lors de sa création selon la nature du fonds traversé .Plusieurs acteurs vont avoir une influence lors de l'installation du réseau, notamment le législateur et le géomètre-expert. Ce dernier pourra notamment intervenir lors de la création des réseaux, et dans le cadre de situations de fait, pour définir un cadre juridique aux installations dans un processus de régularisation.

The Europeanization of private international law, a major breakthrough in the past two decades, has led to an unprecedented uniformization of international jurisdiction and conflict of laws rules. However, the European Union law making process has come up against significant difficulties questioning the rationality of its development. On the one hand, the uniformization's legal basis has come under well-founded criticism. On the other hand, the legal technique, although never disavowed, has quickly failed to reach the required consensus among all member states, adding a geographical fragmentation of the European judicial area, shifting according to the regulation taken into account, to the characteristic material fragmentation of uniformization. Analyzing European private international law in family matters in view of the methodological principle of coherence, which governs the creation of law, allows for the identification of the sources of the aforementioned difficulties and the proposal of adjustments in compliance with the legal basis and the aim pursued. Firstly, a comparison with the evolution of the personal status has brought out the new approach of free movement of people, through the enforcement of "free movement" of decisions. Based on the loosening of the ties between individuals and the state, the pursuit of this freedom has led to a modification of the competences conferred upon the European Union. That alteration has allowed uniformization of private international rules, with no regard whatsoever for the uselessness of the latter to achieve its goal. Secondly, the methodological analysis has revealed that this approach reflects the European legislator's erroneous vision of a uniform European judicial area. Nonetheless, such an idea rests on the insubstantial theoretical foundation of a principle of mutual recognition based on a questionable vision of an absolute mutual trust between member states. Therefore, it has aroused strong reactions from member states willing to protect their own national ...

This article The European Social Charter ('ESC') is the most significant social rights treaty, truly becoming Europe´s Social Constitution (Turin Process). Spain lagging behind over thirty-four European States, who have already ratified the revised 1996 ESC, is a much regrettable reality. Fortunately, despite this unacceptable reality, the judicial application of the ESC by labour courts is making substantial progress; since November of 2013, as regards enforcement of the 1961 ESC and its 1988 Protocol, in relation to legislative amendments adopted in order to deal with the economic crisis, namely, the duration of the one-year trial period for new labour contracts, the revocation of the pensions uprating, and the consideration of on-call periods as working time, among others. As a result of the foregoing, the European Social Charter has become a weapon for citizens vis-à-vis social rights, and consequently, human rights violations.

Cette contribution est un résumé de notre mémoire de licence "L'institution du Conseil d'Etat en Belgique: le combat d'un homme, Henri Velge" défendu en 2003 à l'ULB (Prix Suzanne Tassier). Elle revient sur le long et difficile processus de création de cette institution, débattu depuis l'Indépendance en 1830. ; The Council of State, created in 1946, results from an extremely long process of gestation which proceeded in three phases: a failed legislative (1832-1857), a doctrinal (1857-1911) and a legislative phase which succeeded after an inversion of jurisprudence concerning the responsibility of the State (1911-1946). Only the latter will hold our attention. One sees the confrontation of two competitor systems: the legal solution (extension of competences of the judicial power to the administrative dispute) and the administrative solution (creation of a higher administrative jurisdiction: the Court of the administrative dispute). The legal solution, which dovetailed more with the national traditions, met with strong opposition on behalf of the executive powers and legislature that viewed it as an inadmissible extension of the judicial power. Confronted with this invincible opposition, the administrative solution was essential after having been the subject of several academic workshops, of bills and of press campaigns. Even King Albert I had been favorable to the institution. By the end of the year 1935, the question seemed ripe and the creation of the Court imminent. The situation changed abruptly in 1936 with the second government Van Zeeland. The national and international situation, which induced an extension of the capacities of the executive, was not favourable to the creation of an institution likely to cancel acts even if they were illegal. The prime minister proposed, in total opposition with legal doctrine, the introduction of a Council of State – including a section of legislation and a section of administration – deprived of any jurisdictional capacity. From 1936 to 1946, a long parliamentary process lead to a compromise: a single institution with two sections equipped with a broad jurisdictional competence. Henri Velge, "the man of the Council of State in Belgium", will be the guide of this dense story. We will follow him, during thirty-five years, from the time he was a young student in law protesting the awkward situation of private individuals in front of the administration, to his position of first First president of the Council of State.