Judicial Deference and Democratic Governance in Nascent Democracies: Self-restraining Courts in Post-transitional South Africa, Taiwan, and Poland

Judicial Deference and Democratic Governance in Nascent Democracies: Self-restraining Courts in Post-transitional South Africa, Taiwan, and Poland
Author: Cheng-Yi Huang
Publisher:
Total Pages: 333
Release: 2009
Genre: Administrative law
ISBN: 9781109313291

Post-transitional democracies usually face two contradictory needs. On the one hand, owing to political atrocity of the past, people aspire to a democratic state based on the rule of law, which can effectively constrain the executive power from abuse. On the other, the government has to rebuild a well-functioning state on the wreckage of former authoritarian regimes, which requires a potent administrative body. This conflict can be vividly and repeatedly seen in administrative cases in constitutional courts of post-transitional countries. This dissertation examines the latest development of judicial control of administrative action in three post-transitional countries: South Africa, Taiwan, and Poland. By focusing on three significant cases and the trajectories of administrative law reform in these countries, this dissertation explores three questions: Why would these courts like to defer to agencies in the post-transitional politics? When would they be willing to defer to agencies? What are the consequences of judicial self-restraint in these nascent democracies? For the first question, I argue that the courts would like to defer to agencies because the courts can play a pivotal role in the process of policymaking. By deference, the courts would not at all lose their power to agencies by deference. Indeed, they simply delegate the decisional power to agencies and can adjust and readjust the deference over the long run. As for the second question, I articulate four conditions on which the courts would be willing to defer to agencies: structural entrenchment of the rule of law, diffusion of social monitoring, a relatively long time horizon, and information deficit. Finally, drawing from the experience of Chevron deference in the United States, I elaborated a model of information elicitation to explain the logic of judicial deference. By this model, I justify the legitimacy of judicial deference on its function of information elicitation which will empower institutional agency of post-transitional governments and secure the autonomy of their citizens. These two elements will in turn facilitate democratic consolidation in nascent democracies

Judicial Deference and Democratic Governance in Nascent Democracies

Judicial Deference and Democratic Governance in Nascent Democracies
Author: Cheng-Yi Huang
Publisher:
Total Pages: 316
Release: 2009
Genre: Administrative law
ISBN:

Post-transitional democracies usually face two contradictory needs. On the one hand, owing to political atrocity of the past, people aspire to a democratic state based on the rule of law, which can effectively constrain the executive power from abuse. On the other, the government has to rebuild a well-functioning state on the wreckage of former authoritarian regimes, which requires a potent administrative body. This conflict can be vividly and repeatedly seen in administrative cases in constitutional courts of post-transitional countries. This dissertation examines the latest development of judicial control of administrative action in three post-transitional countries: South Africa, Taiwan, and Poland. By focusing on three significant cases and the trajectories of administrative law reform in these countries, this dissertation explores three questions: Why would these courts like to defer to agencies in the post-transitional politics? When would they be willing to defer to agencies? What are the consequences of judicial self-restraint in these nascent democracies?. For the first question, I argue that the courts would like to defer to agencies because the courts can play a pivotal role in the process of policymaking. By deference, the courts would not at all lose their power to agencies by deference. Indeed, they simply delegate the decisional power to agencies and can adjust and readjust the deference over the long run. As for the second question, I articulate four conditions on which the courts would be willing to defer to agencies: structural entrenchment of the rule of law, diffusion of social monitoring, a relatively long time horizon, and information deficit. Finally, drawing from the experience of Chevron deference in the United States, I elaborated a model of information elicitation to explain the logic of judicial deference. By this model, I justify the legitimacy of judicial deference on its function of information elicitation which will empower institutional agency of post-transitional governments and secure the autonomy of their citizens. These two elements will in turn facilitate democratic consolidation in nascent democracies.

Democratization and the Judiciary

Democratization and the Judiciary
Author: Siri Gloppen
Publisher: Psychology Press
Total Pages: 228
Release: 2004
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9780714655680

Introduction : the accountability function of courts in new democracies / Siri Gloppen, Roberto Gargarella, and Elin Skaar Judicial review in developed democracies / Martin Shapiro How some reflections on the United States' experience may inform African efforts to build court systems and the rule of law / Jennifer Widner The constitutional court and control of presidential extraordinary powers in Colombia / Rodrigo Uprimny The politics of judicial review in Chile in the era of domestic transition, 1990-2002 / Javier A. Couso Legitimating transformation : political resource allocation in the South African constitutional court / Theunis Roux The accountability function of courts in Tanzania and Zambia / Siri Gloppen Renegotiating "law and order" : judicial reform and citizen responses in post-war Guatemala / Rachel Sieder Economic reform and judicial governance in Brazil : balancing independence with accountability / Carlos Santiso In search of a democratic justice what courts should not do : Argentina, 1983-2002 / Roberto Gargarella Lessons learned and the way forward / Irwin P. Stotzky.

Judges and Democratization

Judges and Democratization
Author: B. C. Smith
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages:
Release: 2017-01
Genre:
ISBN: 9781138682931

Judiciaries must be politically impartial and immune from political interference if democracy is to be consolidated in countries in transition from authoritarian rule. Without an independent judiciary there can be no rule of law, and without the rule of law there can be no democracy. Judges and Democratization is based on the premise that democracy cannot be consolidated without the rule of law of which judicial independence is an indispensable part. It pays particular attention to the restraints placed upon judicial independence, and the reforms which are being applied, or remain to be adopted, in order to guard against the different kinds of interference which prevent judicial decisions being taken in a wholly impartial way. It examines the paradox of judicial activism arising from the independence endowed upon the judiciary by post-authoritarian constitutions. The book asks how, in the context of this endowed authority, such accountability can be made compatible with the preservation of judicial independence when the concept of an accountable, independent judiciary appears to be a contradiction in terms. This text will be of key interest to teachers and students of politics, comparative government/politics, combined politics and law, democracy and governance, human rights and democratization, and democratic development.

Comparative Administrative Law

Comparative Administrative Law
Author: Susan Rose-Ackerman
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 689
Release: 2010-01-01
Genre: Law
ISBN: 1849808104

This research handbook is a comprehensive overview of the field of comparative administrative law. The specially commissioned chapters in this landmark volume represent a broad, multi-method approach combining perspectives from history and social science with more strictly legal analyses. Comparisons of the United States, continental Europe, and the British Commonwealth are complemented by contributions that focus on Latin America, Africa, and Asia. The work aims to stimulate comparative research on public law, reaching across countries and scholarly disciplines. Beginning with historical reflections on the emergence of administrative law over the last two centuries, the volume then turns to the relationship of administrative and constitutional law, with an additional section focusing on the key issue of administrative independence. Two further sections highlight the possible tensions between impartial expertise and public accountability, drawing insights from economics and political science as well as law. The final section considers the changing boundaries of the administrative state – both the public-private distinction and the links between domestic and transnational regulatory bodies such as the European Union. In covering this broad range of topics, the book illuminates a core concern of administrative law: the way individuals and organizations across different systems test and challenge the legitimacy of public authority. This extensive, interdisciplinary appraisal of the field will prove a vital resource for scholars and students of administrative and comparative law. Historians of the state looking for a broad overview of a key area of public law, reformers in emerging economies, donor agencies looking for governance options, and policy analysts with an interest in the law/policy interface will find this work a valuable addition to their library.

EU Law in Populist Times

EU Law in Populist Times
Author: Francesca Bignami
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 611
Release: 2020-01-02
Genre: Law
ISBN: 1108485081

A state-of-the-art analysis of the contentious areas of EU law that have been put in the spotlight by populism.

Courts in Latin America

Courts in Latin America
Author: Gretchen Helmke
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 353
Release: 2011-01-17
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1139497162

To what extent do courts in Latin America protect individual rights and limit governments? This volume answers these fundamental questions by bringing together today's leading scholars of judicial politics. Drawing on examples from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica and Bolivia, the authors demonstrate that there is widespread variation in the performance of Latin America's constitutional courts. In accounting for this variation, the contributors push forward ongoing debates about what motivates judges; whether institutions, partisan politics and public support shape inter-branch relations; and the importance of judicial attitudes and legal culture. The authors deploy a range of methods, including qualitative case studies, paired country comparisons, statistical analysis and game theory.

Government by Judiciary

Government by Judiciary
Author: Raoul Berger
Publisher: Studies in Jurisprudence and L
Total Pages: 0
Release: 1997
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9780865971448

It is Berger's theory that the United States Supreme Court has embarked on "a continuing revision of the Constitution, under the guise of interpretation," thereby subverting America's democratic institutions and wreaking havoc upon Americans' social and political lives. Raoul Berger (1901-2000) was Charles Warren Senior Fellow in American Legal History, Harvard University. Please note: This title is available as an ebook for purchase on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iTunes.

Judicial Power

Judicial Power
Author: Christine Landfried
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 411
Release: 2019-02-07
Genre: Law
ISBN: 1316999084

The power of national and transnational constitutional courts to issue binding rulings in interpreting the constitution or an international treaty has been endlessly discussed. What does it mean for democratic governance that non-elected judges influence politics and policies? The authors of Judicial Power - legal scholars, political scientists, and judges - take a fresh look at this problem. To date, research has concentrated on the legitimacy, or the effectiveness, or specific decision-making methods of constitutional courts. By contrast, the authors here explore the relationship among these three factors. This book presents the hypothesis that judicial review allows for a method of reflecting on social integration that differs from political methods, and, precisely because of the difference between judicial and political decision-making, strengthens democratic governance. This hypothesis is tested in case studies on the role of constitutional courts in political transformations, on the methods of these courts, and on transnational judicial interactions.

Democracy and International Law

Democracy and International Law
Author: Gregory H. Fox
Publisher:
Total Pages: 944
Release: 2020
Genre: Democracy
ISBN: 9781788114745

At the end of the Cold War, international law scholars engaged in furious debate over whether principles of democratic legitimacy had entered international law. Many argued that a 'democratic entitlement' was emerging. Others were skeptical that international practice in democracy promotion was either consistent or sufficiently widespread and many found the idea of democratic entitlement dangerous. Those debates, while ongoing, have not been comprehensively revisited in almost twenty years. Together with an original introduction, this volume collects the leading scholarship of the past two decades on these and other questions. It focuses particular attention on the normative consequences of the recent 'democratic recession' in many regions of the world.