Peter Vondoepp, Rachel Ellett, “Reworking Strategic Models of Executive-Judicial Relations: Insights from New African Democracies.” Comparative Politics, vol. 43, no. 2 (2011): 147-165. Summary: In emerging African democracies, why do judiciaries experience high levels of government interference in some contexts and not in others? Original research conducted in five commonwealth African countries reveals that conventional strategic …
Jothie Rajah, “Punishing Bodies, Securing the Nation: How Rule of Law Can Legitimate the Urbane Authoritarian State.” Law & Social Inquiry, vol. 36, no. 4 (2011): 945–70. Summary: Although authoritarian rule of law may seem an oxymoron, strategic reconfigurations of the “rule of law” can produce acceptance of law that observes procedure while erasing rights. By …
Hadi Enayat, Law, State, and Society in Modern Iran : Constitutionalism, Autocracy, and Legal Reform, 1906-1941. New York: Palgrave Macmillan US, 1st ed. 2013. Summary: Using a ‘Historical Institutionalist’ approach, this book sheds light on a relatively understudied dimension of state-building in early twentieth century Iran, namely the quest for judicial reform and the rule of law …
Lynette J. Chua, Stacia L. Haynie, “Judicial Review of Executive Power in the Singaporean Context, 1965–2012.” Journal of Law and Courts, vol. 4, no. 1 (2016): 43–64. Summary: This article provides the first empirical analysis of court decisions that review the exercise of executive power, or judicial review, in Singapore, a single-party-dominated state known for its …
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, …
Mathilde Cohen, “Judicial Colonialism Today: The French Overseas Courts.” Journal of Law and Courts, vol. 8, no. 2 (2020): 247–76. Summary: France maintains a court system outside of the European continent in so-called overseas regions such as Martinique and New Caledonia. Held as colonies until the 1940s, these territories became part of the French state …
Omar Palermo. “Dictatorship and Judicial Complicity: The Case of Argentina.” In Transitional Justice and the Criminal Responsibility of Judges. Edited by Claudia Cárdenas Aravena, Jaime Couso Salas, Florian Jeßberger, Milan Kuhli, pp. 46-60. London: Routledge, 2025. Summary: The systematic and widespread failure to investigate crimes committed by the judiciary during Argentina’s most recent civil-military dictatorship …
Heba M. Khalil, “ ‘This Country has Laws’ ”: Legalism as a Tool of Entrenching Autocracy in Egypt.” American Behavioral Scientist, vol. 68, no. 12 (2024): 1597-1615. Summary: This article investigates the role of legalism and legal processes in entrenching autocratic rule in post-revolution Egypt. In the aftermath of the spectacular street protests that swept Egypt, …