The Comparative Constitutions Project, directed by Zachary Elkins (University of Texas, Department of Government), Tom Ginsburg (University of Chicago, Law School), and James Melton, produces comprehensive data about the world’s constitutions.
The principals launched the project (with lots of help!) in order to answer a set of research questions about the origins and consequences of constitutional choices. These same questions are of direct relevance to those revising constitutions, who often lack even the most basic information about constitutional provisions in other countries, past and present.
The CCP aims to fill this informational gap by providing systematic data to comparative legal scholars for analysis long before they provide advice to constitution drafters. It is our hope that the analysis of, and insights from, these data will promote peace, justice, and human development through the constitution making process.
Since the project’s launch in 2005, the CCP has collected and analyzed thousands of constitutional texts and made that data publicly available. In 2013, we partnered with Google Ideas to make our texts (not just our data) accessible. Together, we built and launched Constitute, a website that contains a richly indexed set of texts for nearly every national constitution in the world.
Check out the CCP timeline below to learn more about the history of the project.
CCP Timeline
The Comparative Constitutions Project is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Filings and reports regarding the Comparative Constitutions Project are on file with the Illinois Attorney General. Nonprofit disclosures, including annual reports and exemption information, are available upon request.