About The Workshop
SW 94- Revisiting the Normative Foundations of Liberal Democracy: A Legal and Constitutional Perspective
Convenor: Marcin Kilanowski
Contact: markil@umk.pl
This workshop seeks to revisit the normative foundations of liberal democracy from a legal and constitutional perspective in light of a growing sense that, despite its historical achievements, it is no longer fully adequate—conceptually or institutionally—to meet contemporary political challenges. Rising social fragmentation, deepening inequalities, democratic backsliding, and declining civic trust point not merely to failures of implementation, but to more fundamental tensions within the normative architecture of liberal-democratic orders. In particular, the predominance of an individualistic understanding of rights and agency appears increasingly insufficient to sustain the social and institutional conditions upon which democratic life depends.
Rather than advancing a single doctrinal alternative, the workshop starts from the premise that the present moment calls for a broader re-examination of democracy’s normative foundations. It asks whether liberal democracy can be renewed by rearticulating, supplementing, or rebalancing its core principles. In this context, several candidate concepts emerge as focal points for renewal, including solidarity, recognition, relational equality, fraternity, and the common good. Each captures, in distinct ways, the intuition that democratic life depends not only on the protection of individual rights, but also on the quality of social relations and shared commitments.
Among these, the workshop gives particular attention to solidarity as a promising yet under-theorized principle. Solidarity is understood not merely as a moral sentiment or political slogan, but as a potential structuring principle of legal and constitutional order. It offers a way to mediate between individual rights and collective responsibilities, addressing a central tension within liberal thought. At the same time, the workshop remains open to the possibility that solidarity is only one among several viable pathways for renewing democratic theory, and that its strengths and limits are best understood in comparison with alternative frameworks.
The discussion will be organized around three sets of questions. First, what are the most compelling candidates for renewing the normative foundations of democracy today? How do concepts such as solidarity, recognition, or relational equality differ in their normative commitments and theoretical implications? Second, what role can these concepts play within, or beyond, the liberal tradition? Do they function as supplements to liberal principles, as correctives to their excesses, or as elements of a more transformative reconfiguration?
Third, the workshop will examine the institutional implications of these approaches. What would it mean to take solidarity, recognition, or relational equality seriously in the design of legal and political institutions? How might constitutional frameworks, public law doctrines, or welfare policies be reshaped in light of these normative shifts? And to what extent can these concepts be operationalized without undermining legal certainty, political pluralism, or individual freedom?
The workshop will also engage critically with potential objections. Appeals to solidarity or the common good may risk obscuring power asymmetries, imposing contested ethical commitments, or undermining the neutrality associated with liberal legal orders. Conversely, retaining a narrowly individualistic framework may prove inadequate for addressing systemic injustices and collective action problems. By placing competing approaches in dialogue, the workshop aims to clarify both their promises and their limitations.
In developing these themes, the workshop contributes to ongoing debates in legal and political philosophy concerning democratic legitimacy, constitutionalism, and the future of liberalism. It brings together diverse perspectives and methodologies, with particular attention to how these normative frameworks are reflected in existing legal systems and institutional practices.
Ultimately, the workshop advances the idea that renewing liberal democracy does not require a single conceptual breakthrough, but a careful reconfiguration of its normative foundations. Whether through solidarity, recognition, relational equality, or related concepts, the task is to articulate a vision of democracy that preserves the core achievements of liberalism while better accounting for the relational and institutional conditions that sustain democratic life.
