KLÍMA, Karel. Odpovědnost územní samosprávy.

1st ed. Prague: Metropolitan University Prague Press, 2014. 338 s. ISBN 978-80-87956-09-0

Text discusses the ideological bases of the theory of the division of public power in relation to the issue of local self-government. It discusses the theoretical and historical aspects of the key ideological postulates underlying the modern concept of the public administration, including the area of local self-government. These fundaments lie not only in the teachings of the horizontal division of the public power (to the legislative power, executive power and judicial power), but also in the political and philosophical foundations of the vertical division of a public power, here mainly focusing on the executive power.

The question of theresponsability of territorial government is a very complex issue. While the aim of this monography was not to answer every single legal aspect thereof, we tried at least to theoretically break down this issue in sum with the reference to teoretical aspect of this scientifical area: concept of the vertical separation of the powers in a society, constitutional delegation of the powers to the local government in the Czech Republikc, economical and financial responsibility of the local government. To ensure democratic governance it is necessary to have responsibilities governed by the law and not only in the basic triple divide of the state power, but also on the municipal level. Legislation responsibility of the government is contained in a significant number of laws and when applying penalties concerning the liability, lawgiver has well thought-out the controlling mechanism with substantial scope. The question of inferring unadjusted disciplinary level remains, which forms one of the foundations of the structure of a properly functioning government.

The legal order of the Czech Repulic has currently institutes of local and regional referendum which are forms of constitutionally guaranteed rights of the citizens of the Czech Republic „to participate in the administration of public affairs directly“ (article 21 paragraph 1 Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms).

Text focuses on issues of elections to the local councils (municipal boards) as these elections are the legitimacy origin of this representative body. Further it analyses the key cases of breach of electoral principles that have been discussed by the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic within its proceedings. Based on these cases the authoress has tried to discover the basic rules of practice of the courts (judicature) resulting from judicial review of elections. The article deals also with judicature of the European Court of Human Rights.

Liability of EU citizens in connection with discharge of the office in municipal self-government bodies in the Czech Republic deals with right to vote of EU citizens in municipal elections in the Czech Republic. It points out certain aspects of Czech legislation which are not in compliance with EU law. The second part focuses on various types of liability that may arise in connection with the membership of EU citizen in municipal body. It analyzes particular instruments of EU Member States cooperation in civil and criminal matters, which can be applied in case that the EU citizen leaves the Czech Republic. Realization of administrative liability would be the most difficult because general system of mutual recognition of administrative decisions has not been introduced in the European Union for the time being.

The significance of territorial self-government in a democratic law-abiding state lies in its ability to enhance the principle of vertical division of power. Czech territorial self-government is characterized by a high number of small municipalities and by the fact that municipal authorities, in addition to their local powers, exercise state-wide powers. This is why it is vital to take account of the specifics of territorial self-government when planning strategic documents and new legislation dealing with eGovernment. If the electronization of territorial self-government is to help enhance the principle of good administration and boost its democratic character, all current concepts must be pooled and priorities must be set which will provide a safe and generally accessible communication infrastructure for citizens and municipalities but will be flexible enough to allow an independent development of small municipalities and to uphold their unique character.

Monography first provides a detailed treatise on the changes of generally binding municipal regulations, or on the development of the approach to them over the last twenty years, and then deals with selected problems related to the application of liability. Due to the expanding sphere for legislation in the form of generally binding municipal regulations, legal relations of natural and legal persons may be more affected, which stems greater risk of damage and responsibility for it.

Monography describes the responsibility of the mayor of the municipality in its independent and delegated activity. Text discusses the procedures by which citizens can defend themselves against the decision of the mayor or advancement opportunities if mayor refuses to decide. The examples of practice notes, as it is sometimes very difficult to obtain information on the activities of the municipality or compel the mayor to fulfill any obligations. Monography describes also some aspects of the liability councilors with an emphasis on representatives of the village although general conclusions can certainly be applied to regional representatives. Text is also devoted to the issue of implementing the principles of a fair trial, as guaranteed by both the constitutional order and international obligations with regard to judicial review of decisions on offenses. Special attention is paid to the block proceedings, at which, according to settled case-law of the Supreme Administrative Court, is judicial review excluded.

Monography focuses on explaining the essence of the responsibility of municipal police as a subject of the administrative proceedings. At the beginning the attention is dedicated to the theoretical basis of legal status of municipal police within the public administration with a focus on the authorizations and duties of municipal police officers. Subsequently, in the second part the article discusses various institutes of public and civil liability. The final section analyses the responsibility of municipal police for damages committed in the public administration with a focus on the damage caused by an illegal decision or an incorrect official procedure.