Kureshi, Y. (2022). Seeking supremacy: The pursuit of judicial power in Pakistan. Cambridge University Press. The emergence of the judiciary as an assertive and confrontational center of power has been the most consequential new feature of Pakistan’s political system. This book maps out the evolution of the relationship between the judiciary and military in Pakistan, explaining …
Daniela Piana, Judicial Accountabilities in New Europe: From Rule of Law to Quality of Justice (1st ed.). London: Routledge, 2010. Summary: This volume focuses on a highly challenging aspect of all European democracies, namely the issue of combining guarantees of judicial independence and mechanisms of judicial accountability. It does so by filling the gap in European …
Thalia Gerzso,”Judicial resistance during electoral disputes: Evidence from Kenya.” Electoral Studies, vol.85 (2023), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2023.102653. Summary: Over the last decade, African courts have played an important role in the conduct of free and fair elections. In Kenya, the Supreme Court nullified the presidential election of the incumbent. These rulings challenge the conventional wisdom that courts in hybrid …
Leonardo Puleo, Ramona Coman, “Explaining Judges’ Opposition When Judicial Independence Is Undermined: Insights from Poland, Romania, and Hungary.” Democratization, vol. 31, no. 1 (2023): 47–69. Summary: Over the past decade, governing parties in Central and Eastern Europe have dismantled liberal democracy, violating the rule of law and limiting the power of judges. This article examines …
Laura Gamboa, Benjamín García-Holgado, Ezequiel González-Ocantos, “Courts against Backsliding: Lessons from Latin America.” Law & Policy, vol. 46, no. 4 (2024): 358–379. Summary: The recent wave of autocratization in Latin America has put courts at the center of debates about regime and regime change. Much of the literature on the judicial politics of democratic backsliding focuses …
Surabhi Chopra, “Judging the Troops: Exceptional Security Measures and Judicial Impact in India.” Law & Social Inquiry, vol. 44, no. 3 (2019): 555–85. Summary: This Article examines a controversial national security measure: the use of the armed forces within domestic borders. Military policing blurs the boundaries between crime and war, and tends to entail greater use …
Rachel Ibreck, South Sudan’s Injustice System: Law and Activism on the Frontline. London: Zed Books, 2019. Summary: Coming into existence amid a wave of optimism in 2011, South Sudan has since slid into violence and conflict. Even in the face of escalating civil war, however, the people of the country continue to fight for justice, despite …
Amanda Driscoll, Michael J. Nelson, “Judicial Selection and the Democratization of Justice: Lessons from the Bolivian Judicial Elections.” Journal of Law and Courts, vol. 3, no. 1 (2015) Summary: In 2011, Bolivia became the first modern country to directly elect national judges. Reformers heralded the adoption of judicial elections as a “democratization of justice,” by which …
James Melton, Tom Ginsburg, “Does De Jure Judicial Independence Really Matter?: A Reevaluation of Explanations for Judicial Independence.” Journal of Law and Courts, vol. 2, no. 2 (2014): 187–217. Summary: The relationship between de jure and de facto judicial independence is much debated in the literature on judicial politics. Some studies find no relationship between the …
Brad Epperly, “The Provision of Insurance?: Judicial Independence and the Post-Tenure Fate of Leaders.” Journal of Law and Courts, vol. 1, no. 2 (2013): 247–78. Summary: Leading explanations of judicial independence argue political competition incentivizes those in power to create independent courts as insurance against uncertain futures. While much work addresses the role competition plays, …