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The degree to which the traditional concept of property can be adjusted in order to accommodate basic constitutional concepts such as freedom and social duty, is analysed by the author. The focus is placed on recent reforms in the land law of Germany and South Africa. Remarkable similarities in the history, structure and interpretation of German and South African property law and constitutional law are indicated and a link between private law, constitutional law, land reform and legal comparison is established. This is of particular significance for the implementation of the constitutional objectives of land reform by the South African judiciary and legislature. It furthermore provides an overview of the intricate system of constitutional property protection that has been developed in German law.
List of contents
One: Research Question, Terminology and Methodology.- 1: Introduction.- 2: Terminology.- 3: Legal Comparison and the Course of Inquiry.- Two: Background to the Constitutional Protection of Property in Germany and South Africa.- 4: The Drafting Histories of the South African and German Constitutional Property Clauses.- 5: Structure of the Constitutional Protection and Regulation of Property in Germany and South Africa.- 6: Basic Principles of a Constitutional Order and Interpretation of a Constitutional Property Clause.- Three: The Constitutional Inquiry into Property Protection and its Relevance for the Existing Property Order.- 7: The Relevance of the Concept of Property for Protection Under Constitutional and Private Law.- 8: Constitutional Limitations on Property Rights: Regulation, Expropriation and the Property Order.- Four: The Influence of Social Reform on Land Law in Germany and South Africa.- 9: Meaning of the Constitutional Objective of Land Reform for the South African Property Law.- 10: German Reunification and the Property Order.- Five: Conclusion.- 11: Property in Private Law and its Constitutional Protection and Regulation: Some Considerations.- Summary.- Afrikaanse Opsomming.
Summary
The degree to which the traditional concept of property can be adjusted in order to accommodate basic constitutional concepts such as freedom and social duty, is analysed by the author. The focus is placed on recent reforms in the land law of Germany and South Africa. Remarkable similarities in the history, structure and interpretation of German and South African property law and constitutional law are indicated and a link between private law, constitutional law, land reform and legal comparison is established. This is of particular significance for the implementation of the constitutional objectives of land reform by the South African judiciary and legislature. It furthermore provides an overview of the intricate system of constitutional property protection that has been developed in German law.
