European Journal of Law Reform


The Eternity Clause

Lessons from the Czech Example

Keywords eternity clause, constitutional amendment, Czech Republic
Authors Ondřej Preuss
Author's information

344676 Ondřej Preuss
Faculty of Law, Charles University ( This article was written under the “Progress 04: Law in a Transforming World” programme.
  • Abstract

      This article presents lessons from the Czech example of the so-called Eternity Clause’ i.e. a legal standard declaring certain principles, values or specific constitutional provisions to be unalterable and irrevocable. The Eternity Clause is viewed and applied in the Czech Republic as a substantive legal ‘instrument’ that enables society to preserve its values. It is used to limit practical ‘power’ and to maintain desired values and the political system.
      That the Eternity clause is a practical instrument has already been proved by the Czech Constitutional Court in its famous ‘Melcák’ decision. However, recent developments show that the Czech Constitutional Court is no longer open to such a ‘radical’ approach. Nonetheless, it still seems that the court is prepared to defend the values of liberal democracy, just not in such a spectacular way. It is, therefore, more up to the political actors or the people themselves to use Eternity Clause arguments to protect liberal democracy and its values.

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