Judicial Independence in the Age of Democracy: Critical Perspectives from Around the World

Peter H. Russell, David M. O'Brien

University of Virginia Press, 2001 - Law - 325 pages

This collection of essays by leading scholars of constitutional law looks at a critical component of constitutional democracy--judicial independence--from an international comparative perspective. Peter H. Russell's introduction outlines a general theory of judicial independence, while the contributors analyze a variety of regimes from the United States and Latin America to Russia and Eastern Europe, Western Europe and the United Kingdom, Australia, Israel, Japan, and South Africa. Russell's conclusion compares these various regimes in light of his own analytical framework.

Contents

• The Pillars and Politics of Judicial Independence in the United States: 19
• Stifling Judicial Independence from Within The Japanese Judiciary: 31
• The Dynamics of Judicial Independence in Russia: 56
• Judicial Independence in PostCommunist Central and Eastern Europe: 83
• Judicial Independence in Latin Countries of Western Europe: 105
• Autonomy versus Accountability The German Judiciary: 125
• Judicial Independence in England A Loss of Innocence: 149
• Judicial Independence in Australia: 167
• Seeking Social Justice? Judicial Independence and Responsiveness in a Changing South Africa: 188
• Between Two Systems of Law The Judiciary in Hong Kong: 201
• The Critical Challenge of Judicial Independence in Israel: 227
• Judicial Independence and Instability in Central America: 245
• The European Court of Justice: 267
• Conclusion Judicial Independence in Comparative Perspective: 295

About the author

Peter H. Russell, Professor of Political Science Emeritus at the University of Toronto, is author of seven books on the judiciary, constitutional issues, and democracy.David M. O'Brien, Leone Reaves and George W. Spicer Professor at the University of Virginia, is author of numerous publications, including Storm Center: The Supreme Court in American Politics. David Michael O'Brien was born in Rock Springs, Wyoming on August 30, 1951. He received a bachelor's degree in political science and philosophy, a master's degree in political science, and a Ph.D. in political science from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He taught politics at the University of Puget Sound and served briefly as chairman of its politics department. He joined the faculty of the University of Virginia in 1979 and taught politics there for almost four decades. He wrote, co-wrote, or edited more than a dozen books. His book, Storm Center: The Supreme Court in American Politics, won the American Bar Association's Silver Gavel Award. He died of lung cancer on December 20, 2018 at the age of 67.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Judicial Independence in the Age of Democracy: Critical Perspectives from Around the World; Constitutionalism and democracy, ISSN 1933-9402
• Editors: Peter H. Russell, David M. O'Brien
• Publisher: University of Virginia Press, 2001
• ISBN: 0813920159, 9780813920153
• Length: 325 pages
• Subjects: Law / Comparative; Law / Constitutional; Law / Judicial Power; Law / Jurisprudence; Political Science / American Government / General; Political Science / History & Theory; Political Science / Law Enforcement; Political Science / Political Ideologies / Democracy