This book explores the global role of lawyers and the broader “legal complex” as central actors in the struggle for political liberalism.
This foundational study examines the legal profession in the United States as part of a broader inquiry into the roles and responsibilities of established and emerging professions.
Abouharb, M. Rodwan, Laura P. Moyer, and Megan Schmidt, “De Facto Judicial Independence and Physical Integrity Rights.” Journal of Human Rights, vol. 12, no. 4 (2013): 367–96. Summary: Economists, political scientists, and legal scholars have argued that independent judiciaries have an important role to play in promoting economic development and protecting property rights. Abouharb, Moyer, and …
Sergio Verdugo, “How Judges Can Challenge Dictators and Get Away with It: Advancing Democracy while Preserving Judicial Independence.” Columbia Journal of Transnational Law, vol. 59, no. 3 (2021): 554-607 Summary: The literature on constitutional courts in authoritarian and hybrid regimes typically suggests that judges who challenge such regimes in high-stakes cases risk substantial political backlash. Accordingly, …
Alexei Trochev and Rachel Ellett, “Judges and Their Allies: Rethinking Judicial Autonomy through the Prism of Off-Bench Resistance.” Journal of Law and Courts, vol. 2, no. 1 (2014): 67–91. Summary: The social construction of judicial power is a complicated process, especially in hybrid political regimes. Trochev and Ellett argue that off-bench resistance against blatant interference supported …
Peter H Solomon, “Courts and Judges in Authoritarian Regimes.” World Politics, vol. 60, no. 1 (2007): 122–45. Summary: Typically, authoritarian leaders treat law and courts in an instrumental fashion and try to keep judges dependent and responsive to their desires. Various works reveal the sophisticated ways that this is achieved, including the development of judicial bureaucracies …
Steven D Schaff, “Contentious Politics in the Courthouse: Law as a Tool for Resisting Authoritarian States in the Middle East.” Law & Society Review, vol. 55, no. 1 (2021): 139-176 Summary: Under what conditions will individuals mobilize law to resist states that operate above the law? In authoritarian countries, particularly in the Middle East, law is …
Yasser Kureshi, “When Judges Defy Dictators: An Audience-Based Framework to Explain the Emergence of Judicial Assertiveness against Authoritarian Regimes.” Comparative Politics, vol. 53, no. 2 (2021): 233–55, 1–2. Summary: The article explores the conditions under which judiciaries act assertively against authoritarian regimes. Kurashi argues that the judiciary coalesces around institutional norms and preferences in response to …
Zdeněk Kühn, “SPECIAL ISSUE: JUDGES UNDER STRESS: The Judiciary in Illiberal States.” German Law Journal, vol. 22, no. 7 (2021): 1231-1246 Summary: This work deals with the actual functioning of the judicial power and the limits of its independence facing an illiberal or authoritarian state. The work offers a skeptical analysis of the past and especially …
Gretchen Helmke, “Public Support and Judicial Crises in Latin America.” University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law, vol. 13, no. 2 (2010): 397-411 Summary: How do courts establish their power? What conditions undermine it? The answer hinges on how aligned judges are with public opinion. Drawing on the history of the United States Supreme Court, …