Unconstitutional
When something is unconstitutional it is illegal by being a direct violation of a nation's constitution.
A constitutional violation is thus somewhat different than the breaking of a normal law, both in terms of seriousness and punishment. Laws can be declared unconstitutional, though this causes no punishment for those who passed the laws. In many states the supreme court or constitutional court is the final arbiter of whether or not a law is constitutional.
Some examples of unconstitutional actions can be:
- A politician who abuses the powers of his constitutionally-established office
- A legislature that tries to pass a law that would contradict the constitution, without first going through the proper constitutional amendment process.
Most constitutions define the powers of governments. Thus the constitution normally applies only to government actions. This means that only governments can violate the nation's constitution.
See also
Judicial review
