Legal Definitions - sovereign power

Sovereign power refers to the supreme and independent authority that a state or government possesses within its own territory. This power grants it the exclusive right to create, interpret, and enforce laws, manage its internal affairs, and conduct foreign relations, all without being subject to the control or dictates of any other external entity.

Here are a few examples to illustrate this concept:

• A National Government Setting Economic Policy: When the government of a country decides to implement a new national income tax rate or establish specific regulations for its banking sector, it is exercising its sovereign power. No other country or international organization can force it to change these policies against its will. The government has the ultimate authority to create these financial laws and enforce them upon its citizens and businesses within its borders.

• A State Government Regulating Education: In a federal system, individual states often retain significant sovereign power over certain areas. For instance, a state government in the United States has the sovereign power to determine its own public school curriculum, set graduation requirements, and license teachers within its borders. While federal laws may provide some guidelines or funding, the state ultimately creates and enforces the specific educational laws for its residents, independent of other states or direct federal control over these specific details.

• An Indigenous Nation Establishing Its Own Justice System: Many recognized Indigenous nations or tribes possess a degree of sovereign power over their tribal lands. This allows them to establish their own tribal courts, police forces, and laws concerning matters like family disputes, land use, or business operations within their recognized territory. They exercise sovereign power by creating and enforcing these laws for their members and residents on tribal lands, often independent of the surrounding state or provincial legal systems on certain issues.