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 …
Global Comparison
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 …
Fombad (2012), “Some Perspectives on the Prospects for Judicial Independence in Post-1990 African Constitutions.”
Charles Manga Fombad, “Some Perspectives on the Prospects for Judicial Independence in Post-1990 African Constitutions.” The Denning Law Journal, vol. 16, no.1 (2012): 17-43 Summary: According to popular wisdom, judicial independence and the rule of …
Helmke, Rosenbluth (2009), “Regimes and the Rule of Law: Judicial Independence in Comparative Perspective.”
Gretchen Helmke and Frances Rosenbluth, “Regimes and the Rule of Law: Judicial Independence in Comparative Perspective.” Annual Review of Political Science, vol. 12, no. 1 (2009): 345-366. Summary: According to popular wisdom, judicial independence and …
Shen-Bayh (2018), “Strategies of Repression: Judicial and Extrajudicial Methods of Autocratic Survival.”
Fiona Shen-Bayh, “Strategies of Repression: Judicial and Extrajudicial Methods of Autocratic Survival.” World Politics, vol. 70, no. 3 (2018): 321–57. Summary: Strategies of repression vary widely between extrajudicial and judicial extremes, from unrestrained acts of violence …
Aydin (2013), “Judicial Independence across Democratic Regimes: Understanding the Varying Impact of Political Competition.”
Aylin Aydin, “Judicial Independence across Democratic Regimes: Understanding the Varying Impact of Political Competition.” Law & Society Review, vol. 47, no. 1 (2013): 105–34. Summary: One of the most prominent explanations of the creation and maintenance …
Hilbink, Ingram (2019), “Courts and Rule of Law in Developing Countries.”
Lisa Hilbink and Matthew C. Ingram, “Courts and Rule of Law in Developing Countries.” Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics (23 May 2019). Summary: Under what conditions can courts be effective and the rule of law …
Davis (2025), “The ‘Case’ for Independent Courts: The Insurance Theory of Judicialization in Autocracies.”
Taraleigh Davis, “The ‘Case’ for Independent Courts: The Insurance Theory of Judicialization in Autocracies.” Journal of Law and Courts, vol. 13, no. 1 (2025): 35–50. Summary: Why would authoritarian rulers allow for an independent judiciary …
Dichio (2024), “Stewards, defenders, progenitors, and collaborators: Courts in the age of democratic decline.”
Michael A. Dichio, “Stewards, defenders, progenitors, and collaborators: Courts in the age of democratic decline.” Law and Policy, vol. 47, no. 1 (2025): e12251. Summary: In this introductory essay to the special issue of Law …
Moustafa (2007), “The Politics of Domination: Law and Resistance in Authoritarian States”
This article argues that entrenched authoritarian regimes strengthen judicial institutions to consolidate power by attracting investment, enforcing bureaucratic discipline, maintaining elite coalitions, and legitimizing controversial reforms.