Kjersti Lohne. “Rescaling the Legal Complex: Lawyers and the Resilience of the Liberal International Order.” Law & Social Inquiry, vol. 50, no. 2 (2025): 598-617.

This review article revisits “legal complex” literature to assess whether lawyers and related legal occupations can be relied upon to defend political liberalism during periods of democratic crisis. Drawing on foundational works by Halliday, Karpik, Feeley, and others, the essay portrays the legal profession as a historically significant actor in the rise, development, and defense of political liberalism. The concept of the legal complex captures networks of lawyers, judges, and legal organizations that mobilize in support of civil liberties, rule of law, and constitutional governance.

Against the backdrop of contemporary democratic erosion and the weakening of the liberal international order, the essay reexamines the strengths and limits of the legal complex framework. It connects this literature to broader scholarship on legal mobilization, legal agents, and law’s role in transitional politics. The author argues for “rescaling” the analysis—moving beyond national case studies to consider the legal complex at the international level. By doing so, the essay highlights the potential and constraints of legal professionals as defenders of political liberalism in an era of global democratic backsliding.