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CONSTITUTIONAL LAW 1
Layla-Tal Medina2007-67099-1Preliminary Considerations-Concept of StatePOLITICAL LAW – is the branch of public law which deals with theorganization and operations of the governmental organs of the State anddefines the relations of the State with the inhabitants of its territory.
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What is constitutional law?
Is that branch of political law which fixes the organization of government,determines the competence of the administrative authorities who executethe law and indicates to the individual, remedies for the violation of hisrights.
What is a Constitution?
1.A Constitution is the fundamental organic law of a State whichcontains the principles on which the government is founded andregulates the division and exercise of sovereign powers.2.A body of rules and maxims in accordance with which the powersof sovereignty are habitually exercised. THE SUPREMACY OF THE CONSTITUTION The Constitution is the most basic and most paramount law to which allother laws must conform and to which all persons including the higherofficials of the land must defer. No act shall be valid however noble itsintentions if it is in conflict with the Constitution. The Constitution mustreign supreme.
Concept of State
--A community of persons, more or less numerous, permanently occupyinga fixed territory and possessed of an independent government organisedfor political ends to which the great body of inhabitants render habitualobedience.
State, as distinguished from nation
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Philippine Political Law, Isagani Cruz, p.1
 The state pertains to a legal concept, while the nation refers to a racial orethnic concept.…
as distinguished from government
 The government is only an element of the state. The government is anagent, and the State is the principal. The government externalizes the willof the State. THE ELEMENTS OF THE STATE1.People- the inhabitants of the state; their number must not be toosmall as not to be able to defend themselves, and not too great asthey would be difficult to administer. They must be also of bothsexes so they could also be able to perpetuate themselves. Thepeople may develop and share certain characteristics such as acommon language, religion, and a set of customs and traditionsthat will unite them into a more closely knit entity known as thenation.2.Territory-fixed portion of the surface of the earth, inhabited by thepeople of the state. The territory must not be too small as to beunable to provide for the needs of the people; nor should it be toolarge as to be difficult to administer. The territory can extend toover a vast expanse, like China or Russia, or be as small as AbuDhabi.
COMPONENTS OF TERRITORY 
a.terrestrial domain-the land massb.maritime or fluvial domain-inland and external watersc.aerial domain- the air space above the land and water.3.Government- is…a.the agency or instrumentality through which the will of the state isformulated, expressed and realised.b.the institution or aggregate of institutions by which anindependent society makes and carries out those rules of actionwhich are necessary to enable men to live in a social State, orwhich are imposed upon the people forming that society by thosewho possess the power or authority of prescribing them.FUNCTIONS The government performs two functions—the constituent and theministrant.
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1.Constituent-constitute the bonds of society. Constituent functionsconsist of fixing of legal relations between husband and wife,parents and children; keeping of order and providing protectionfrom violence; regulation of the holding, transmission andinterchange of property; determination of liabilities for debt orcrime; determination of contractual rights between individuals;definition and punishment of crimes, administration of justice incivil cases; administration of political duties, privileges, andrelations of citizens, and dealings of the state with foreign powers,preservation of state from external dangers, and the advancementof international interests.2.Ministrant functions-are those taken to advance the generalinterests of society—such as public works, public charity,regulation of trade and industry.
De Jure and De Facto governments 
A
de jure
government has rightful title but no power or control,because it may have been withdrawn or it has not yet actually entered intoexercise. On the other hand, a
de facto
government is a government of fact—it actually exercises power or control, but has no legal title.3.Sovereignty-a.means the supreme, uncontrollable power, the absoluteright to govern.b.The supreme will of the State, the power to make laws,and enforce them by all the means of coercion it cares toemploy. 
Two kinds of Sovereign
1.Legal- authority which has the power to issue final commands; thesupremacy of a person; the possession of unlimited power to makelaws.2.Political- the power behind the legal sovereign; the sum of theinfluences that operate upon it; the power of the people.
Two aspects of Sovereign
1.Internal- which means the supremacy of person or body of personsin the State over the individuals or association of individuals withinthe area of its jurisdiction; the power of the state to control itsdomestic affairs.2.External- the absolute independence of one State as a whole withreference to the other States. External sovereignty is nothing morethan the freedom of the State from subjection to or control by aforeign State; that is, the supremacy State as against all foreignwills. It is also the power of the State to direct its relations withother States.Characteristics of a Sovereign1.permanent2.exclusive3.comprehensive4.absolute5.indivisible6.inalienable7.imprescriptible
Effect of Change of Sovereignty –
 The political laws of the formersovereign, whether compatible or not with those of the newsovereign, are automatically abrogated, unless they are expresslyre-enacted by affirmative act of the new sovereign. Municipalslaws remain in force.
(Macariola v. Asuncion, 114 SCRA 77)
Laurel vs. Misa
“Since the preservation of the allegiance of the obligation of fidelity andobedience of a citizen or subject to his government or sovereign does notdemand from him a positive action but only passive attitude orforbearance from adhering to the enemy by giving the latter aid andcomfort, the occupant has no power, as a corollary of the precedingconsideration, to repeal or suspend the operation of law of treason,essential for the preservation of the allegiance of the inhabitants to theirlegitimate government, or compel them to adhere and give aid andcomfort to him; because it is evident that such action is not demanded bythe exigiencies of the military service or not necessary for the control of the inhabitants and safety and protection of his army, and because it istantamount to practically transferring temporarily to the occupant theirallegiance to the titular government or sovereignty.” –Justice FelicisimoFeria
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Doctrine of Parens Patriae-guardian of the rights of the people under certain disabilities
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