Political Science 792CJ - S-ComparativeJudicialPolitics

This course will explore the causes and consequences of cross-national variation in judicial and constitutional systems, and in the politics of law. From where do these differences emerge? To what degree do they persist? What does it mean to say that there has been a global trend towards a judicialization of politics? Does that trend suggest some kind of cross-national convergence? Do judicial empowerment and rights consciousness look the same in every national context? How should scholars understand the spread of bill of rights? The proliferation of international law and supra-national courts?