The Requirement of Promulgation of Non-Legislative Acts in the 1983 Code of Canon Law

In this study, the author reflects on the ratio legis of the necessity of promulgating certain non-legislative acts in the 1983 Code of Canon Law, such as general executory decrees (Can. 31 § 2) and authentic interpretation put forth in the form of law (Can. 16 § 2). By examining the opinions of canonists, the author shows that this reason is the public character of the act, in the sense of being intended for the general public. In his opinion, the occurrence of such solutions in the canonical legal order calls for a revision of the definition of promulgation, which, in his opinion, was determined by the principle set out in the decretal law “leges instituuntur, cum promulgantur” (X.1.3.4) and the considerations of pre-code canonists referring to it. The author considers the definition of promulgation developed by Javer Otaduy to be adequate for the systemic solutions: “promulgation is the act of a competent authority by which it makes public a legal text addressed to a certain community”.