Principles and Foundations of Economic Law

Law: A Fundamental Positive Source

In legal doctrine, law is conceived as a mandatory rule established by the authority under the CPR, intended to remain in effect and sanctioned by force.

Characteristics of Economic Law

• Generality: A general rule aimed at regulating the application of economic policy instruments. As Planiol argues, "what characterizes the law is not the number of people it governs, but the indeterminacy of the cases for which it was issued."
• Requirement: Everyone must abide by its provisions. This is an inherent feature embodied in two aspects:
  • a) An obligation to fulfill its mandate.
  • b) The obligation to respect the rights established for third parties by the legal text.
• Empire: The coercive force that ensures obedience to the law, often enforced by state authorities.

Economic law seeks to secure compliance with economic policy objectives not only through sanctions but also through a system of incentives and privileges.

Additional Legal Attributes

• Opportunity: Laws must align with social needs; otherwise, they risk falling into disuse, being overwhelmed by practice, or being circumvented.
• Permanence: Laws should respond to a need indefinitely, depending on the purpose of their inspiration. Economic law, however, should have no more permanence than is necessary to achieve its specific goals.

Domain and Repeal

Domain of Economic Law: The domain is effectively unlimited, with its only boundaries marked by the terms of the CPR.

Repeal of Economic Law: Beyond express and implied repeal, a significant form in economic law is organic repeal. This occurs when a new law regulates the entire body of material previously treated by an older law, even if some provisions are not strictly irreconcilable.

The CPR as a Fundamental Source

The CPR serves as the fundamental positive source of economic law, containing the attributes of power and guarantees of freedom. It establishes the fundamental status and conditions within the legal principles that govern collective life.

Economic Perspectives in the CPR

While some proponents of liberal economic ideas have criticized state intervention based on alleged violations of constitutional rights, our CPR contains a series of economic and social declarations. These are related to the OPE doctrine, which, while expressed across various normative hierarchies, finds its primary basis within the CPR.