In the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

, the Council of State (Raad van State) is a constitution

Constitution

A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...

ally established advisory body to the government

Government

Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...

 which consists of members of the royal family and Crown-appointed members generally having political, commercial, diplomatic, or military experience. The Council of State must be consulted by the cabinet on proposed legislation before a law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

 is submitted to the parliament

Parliament

A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...

. The Council of State Administrative Law section also serves as a court of appeal for citizens against executive branch decisions.
The Queen is President of the Council of State but she seldom chairs meetings. The Vice-President of the Council of State chairs meetings in the Queens' absence. Under Dutch Constitutional Law the Vice-President of the Council is acting Head of State when there is no Monarch; e.g. if the Royal Family were to become extinct.

Vice-Presidents of the Council of State

Name	Period
Gijsbert Karel van Hogendorp Gijsbert Karel van Hogendorp Gijsbert Karel, Count van Hogendorp was a conservative Dutch statesman. He was the brother of Dirk van Hogendorp the elder and the father of Dirk van Hogendorp the younger....	1814-1816
Joihan Hendrik Mollerus	1817-1829
Willem II van Oranje-Nassau William II of the Netherlands William II was King of the Netherlands, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, and Duke of Limburg from 7 October 1840 until his death in 1849.- Early life and education :...	1829-1840
Hendrik Jacob van Doorn van Westcapelle	1841-1848
Willem Gerard van de Poll	1848-1858
Ænæus Mackay	1862-1876
Gerlach Cornelis Joannes van Reenen Gerlach Cornelis Joannes van Reenen Gerlach Cornelis Joannes van Reenen was a Dutch politician.-References:...	1876-1893
Johan Æmilius Abraham van Panhuys	1893-1897
Johan Willem Meinard Schorer	1897-1903
Peter Joannes van Swinderen	1903-1912
Joan Röell Joan Röell Jonkheer Joan Röell was a Dutch nobleman, lawyer, politician and statesman. He was a member of a prominent Dutch noble family which produced many public administrators and politicians....	1912-1914
Willem Fredrik van Leeuwen	1914-1928
Fredrik Alexander Carel van Lynden van Sandenburg	1928-1932
Frans Beelaerts van Blokland Frans Beelaerts van Blokland Frans Beelaerts van Blokland was a Dutch politician.-Early life:After attending the private school, Van Bouscholte, and Gymnasium Haganum, Beelaets van Blokland studied at the Rijksuniversiteit Leiden from 1890 to 1895.-References:...	1933-1956
Bram Rutgers	1956-1959
Louis Beel Louis Beel Louis Joseph Maria Beel was a Dutch politician of the defunct Catholic People's Party now merged into the Christian Democratic Appeal . He served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from July 3, 1946 until August 7, 1948 and again from December 22, 1958 until May 19, 1959...	1959-1972
Marinus Ruppert	1973-1980
Willem Scholten Willem Scholten Willem Scholten was a Dutch politician.-References:...	1980-1997
Herman Tjeenk Willink Herman Tjeenk Willink Herman Diederik Tjeenk Willink is a Dutch politician of the Labour Party .He was president of the Senate from 1991 until 1997. He was preceded by Piet Steenkamp and succeeded by Frits Korthals Altes. In 1997 he became vice-president of the Dutch Council of State, and therefore the most important...	1997-Present