The state: conditio sine qua non
Loughlin, M.
(2019).
The state: conditio sine qua non.
International Journal of Constitutional Law,
16(4), 1156–1163.
https://doi.org/10.1093/icon/moy090
(2019).
The state: conditio sine qua non.
International Journal of Constitutional Law,
16(4), 1156–1163.
https://doi.org/10.1093/icon/moy090
The legal idea of the state is commonly misunderstood. In this note, the nature of the concept is explained and its significance for modern legal thought presented. Drawing on the distinction between sovereign and sovereignty, it is argued that the state-an idea that links territory, authority and people in an intelligible scheme-is the foundational concept that enables lawyers coherently to engage with the issue of political authority.