Kim Lane Scheppele. “Autocratic Legalism.” The University of Chicago Law Review, vol. 85, no. 2 (2018): 545-584.
This article analyzes the critical role that attorneys play in confronting and resisting democratic backsliding, especially in regimes where autocrats increasingly use the tools of law—rather than brute force—to consolidate power. In these contexts, lawyers serve as both early warning systems and key actors in documenting abuses, exposing manipulations of legal processes, and defending the rule of law. Their work in constitutional litigation, criminal defense, and public advocacy becomes a form of resistance, particularly when judicial appointments, constitutional reforms, and legalistic justifications are weaponized to erode democratic norms. But their role goes beyond courtroom battles. The passage argues that attorneys must also take on the responsibility of civic educators, helping the broader public understand how and when legal reforms signal danger—such as discretionary use of state power for economic coercion or the strategic redrafting of constitutions to entrench executive authority. In backsliding democracies, where law is used to give authoritarianism a veneer of legitimacy, legal professionals must work to demystify law, empower citizens with legal knowledge, and foster a culture of constitutional resistance that cannot be easily swept aside by autocratic legalism.