III.
BILL OF RIGHTS o Preservation and enhancement of the dignity and
CONCEPT OF A BILL OF RIGHTS
 Declaration and enumeration of a person’s rights and
privileges which the Constitution is designed to protect against
violations by the government, individuals or group of
individuals
 Charter of liberties for the individual
 Limitation upon the power of the State
 In the absence of governmental interference, these liberties
cannot be invoked against the State
 does not govern the relationship between individuals
 Governs the relationship between the individual and the State
and its agents
 tempers governmental power and protects the individual
against unwarranted interference by govt
 cannot be invoked against acts of private individuals
 right – power, privilege, immunity guaranteed under the
Consti, a law, decision or recognized as a result of long usage,
constitutive of a legally enforceable claims of one person
against another
BASIS OF A BILL OF RIGHTS
1. Bedrock of constitutional government
o If people are stripped off their rights, democracy
cannot survive and government becomes meaningless
2. Importance accorded to the dignity and worth of the
individual
o Embodies a basic dogma of democracy 
transcendental importance of the individual
worth of the human personality is the core of
democracy
3. Protection against arbitrary actions of government and other
members of society
o Limitations on governmental power
o Reserves certain areas of liberty against aggression and
arbitrary actions by govt
o Intended precisely to restrict authority of the State
o Guarantees a measure of freedom from unwarranted
restraints of other members of society
PURPOSE OF A BILL OF RIGHTS
1. To preserve democratic rights
o Preserve ideals of liberty, equality and security against
the assaults of opportunism, the expediency of the
passing hour, the erosion of small enroachments, and
the scorn and derision of those who have no patience
with general principles
o RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
2. To safeguard fundamental rights
o Place fundamental rights beyond the reach of
majorities and officials
o To establish fundamental rights as legal principles to
be applied by the courts
3. To promote the happiness of the individual
o The happiness of the individual, not the well-being of
the State, is the criterion by which its behavior is to be
judged
NEED FOR A BILL OF RIGHTS
1. The people must assert and protect their rights
o
2. The people must guard against misguided reformers

CLASSES OF RIGHTS
1. Natural rights
2. Constitutional rights
3. Statutory rights
 Civil rights – constitutional and statutory
o Acquired under an organized society
o Protected by constitutions and other laws
o Non-existence in the absence of law
o Human rights – both civil and natural right