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Rechtsstaat is a term borrowed from German jurisprudence which literally means a "law-based state" or "constitutional state". It is a state in which the exercise of governmental power is constrained by the law, and is often tied to the Anglo-American concept of the rule of law. In the Rechtsstaat, the power of the state is limited in order to protect citizens from the arbitrary exercise of authority. In a Rechtsstaat the citizens share both legally based civil liberties and they can use the courts. A country cannot be considered a liberal democracy if it lacks a Rechtsstaat.
The concept of the Rechtsstaat first appeared in the German context in Robert von Mohl's book Die deutsche Polizeiwissenschaft nach den Grundsätzen des Rechtsstaates (1832-1834), and was contrasted with the aristocratic police state.
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