1: Reasons for Courts

What are courts and what is their purpose in society and politics? Mohr defines courts as

a family of passive governmental institutions one of whose prominent functions is the settlement of disputes, distinguished from other governmental institutions by a commitment to decide impartially, after presentation of proofs and arguments by contending parties, and to be able to justify decisions according to pre-existing rule.1

In this session we reflect on the intended functions of courts in societies, common typologies of courts and why they are relevant for the study of politics.

Mandatory readings

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Optional readings

Epstein, Lee, Olga Shvetsova, and Jack Knight. “The role of constitutional courts in the establishment and maintenance of democratic systems of government.” Law & Society Review 35, no. 1 (2001): 117-163.

Mohr, Lawrence B. “Organizations, decisions, and courts.” Law & Society Review 10, no. 4 (1976): 621-642.

Frank, Jerome. “What Courts Do in Fact.” Illinois Law Review 26, no. 6 (1931): 645-666.

Kapiszewski, Diana, and Matthew M. Taylor. “Doing courts justice? Studying judicial politics in Latin America.” Perspectives on politics 6, no. 4 (2008): 741-767.

Dahl, Robert A. “Decision-making in a democracy: The Supreme Court as a national policy-maker.” Journal of Public Law 6, no. 2 (1957): 279.

Footnotes

  1. Mohr, Lawrence B. “Organizations, decisions, and courts.” Law & Society Review 10, no. 4 (1976): 621-642, p. 623.↩︎