Full Description
This book explores concrete situations in which judges are faced with a legislature and an executive that consciously and systematically discard the ideals of the rule of law. It revolves around three basic questions: What happen when states become oppressive and the judiciary contributes to the oppression? How can we, from a legal point of view, evaluate the actions of judges who contribute to oppression? And, thirdly, how can we understand their participation from a moral point of view and support their inclination to resist?
Contents
The Judicial Role and the Rule of Law.- Part One: The War of Law: State Repression and the Rule of Law.- Repression of the Judiciary.- Judicial Acceptance of Oppression.- The Opposition.- Part Two: Holding Judges Responsible for Injustice: The Argument for Criminal Liability.- The Condition of Illegality under International Law.- The condition of Illegality and Failed Usurpations.- The Condition of Illegality in Transitional Settings.- Judges in Special Courts.- Justification of Judicial Oppression.- A Special Immunity for Judges?.- Holding Judges Responsible.- Part Three: The Moral Side of Judging: The Positivism Thesis.- What Positivism?.- Alternative approaches to Legal Interpretation.- Beyond Legal Theory as Explanation.- The Lesser Evil.- Judges for Justice.
