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Glossary

Federalism

constitutional

The constitutional division of sovereign power between national and regional governments.

In more detail

Federal constitutions allocate competences by enumerated lists, residual clauses or both, and provide a mechanism (usually a constitutional court) for resolving disputes. The distribution of tax powers and the extent of concurrent competence determine how centralised a federation is in practice.

Related terms

  • subsidiarity
  • judicial-review

See how this applies to you

Definitions are general. How a term operates depends on the jurisdiction you are in.