On July 28, 2025, Lawyers Defending American Democracy (LDAD), its Maryland chapter (MD-LDAD), the Lawyers Society for the Rule of Law Institute (SRLI), and retired Judge J. Michael Luttig filed an amicus curiae brief in …
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Justice Department files formal complaint against Judge Boasberg
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a formal complaint against District Judge James Boasberg, accusing him of misconduct and demanding his removal from a key deportation case. The complaint stems from Boasberg’s reported private remarks …
India: Call for Transparent Judicial Removal Mechanisms
In a lecture at NALSAR University, Senior Advocate Raju Ramachandran emphasized the need for a transparent and constitutionally grounded mechanism for removing judges in India to ensure a balance between judicial independence and accountability. Drawing …
Kagan Urges Caution in Supreme Court Use of ‘Shadow Docket’
In a speech at the Ninth Circuit’s judicial conference, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan expressed strong concerns about the Court’s increasing reliance on the “shadow docket” — emergency rulings issued without full briefing, oral …
Crouch (2023), “Judicial Loyalty to the Military in Authoritarian Regimes: How the Courts Are Militarized in Myanmar.”
Melissa Crouch, “Judicial Loyalty to the Military in Authoritarian Regimes: How the Courts Are Militarized in Myanmar.” Law & Social Inquiry, vol. 48, no. 2 (2023): 632–59. Summary: While scholars have considered the role of …
Landau, Dixon (2020), “Abusive Judicial Review: Courts Against Democracy.”
David Landau and Rosalind Dixon, “Abusive Judicial Review: Courts Against Democracy.” UC Davis Law Review, vol. 53, no. 3 (2020): 1313-1387. Summary: Both in the United States and around the world, courts are generally conceptualized …
Liu, Su, Su, Wang (2024), “The Law or the Career? Autocratic Judiciaries, Strategic Sentencing, and Political Repression.”
Howard Liu., Su, Ching-Hsuan Su., & Yi-Ting Wang, “The Law or the Career? Autocratic Judiciaries, Strategic Sentencing, and Political Repression.” Comparative Political Studies, https://doi.org/10.1177/00104140241290212, (2024) Summary: Why do judges sometimes act against autocrats’ will, even …
Graver (2018), “Judicial Independence Under Authoritarian Rule: An Institutional Approach to the Legal Tradition of the West.”
Hans Petter Graver, “Judicial Independence Under Authoritarian Rule: An Institutional Approach to the Legal Tradition of the West.” Hague Journal on the Rule of Law, vol. 10, no. 2 (2018): 317-339. Summary: The autonomy of …
Ellett (2013), “Pathways to Judicial Power in Transitional States: Perspectives from African Courts.”
Rachel Ellett, Pathways to Judicial Power in Transitional States: Perspectives from African Courts (1st ed.). London: Routledge, 2013. Summary: This book examines the complex relationship that exists between the construction of judicial power, and the …
Fombad (2024), “The Judiciaries of Africa at a Crossroads: Can they Counter the Wave of Authoritarian Resurgence?”
Charles Fombad. “The Judiciaries of Africa at a Crossroads: Can they Counter the Wave of Authoritarian Resurgence?”, In Judicial Independence in Transitional Democracies. Edited by Nauman Reayat, Rhona K. M. Smith, Moohyung Cho, pp. 12-37. …