The Horizontal Effect: Conceptualisation and Application of Constitutional Rights in Private Law

Abstract

Private law has traditionally followed a separate mindset of rights, which is not necessarily related to the constitution. With the rise of constitutionalism in the world, thinking about constitutionalism and fundamental rights has spilt over into private law. The constitutionalisation of private law (or the horizontal effect of constitutional rights on relations between private actors) is one of the important topics that attract scholarly attention around the world. It can be seen that the modern history of the horizontal effect of constitutional rights has more than 60 years of development. However, in Vietnam, the topic of the effect of constitutional rights in private law has just been raised recently among legal scholars. This article serves as a development of the emerging discussion on the horizontal effect in Vietnam by providing a general conceptualisation and a brief history of the horizontal effect of constitutional rights in the world. The article also proposes the identification of horizontal effect paradigms in countries/jurisdictions and suggests implications of the horizontal effect for Vietnam.