By Michael Fisch
LAW BRIEFS
In "Dark Law: Legalistic Autocrats, Judicial Deference, and the Global Transformation of National Security," (University of Pennsylvania, J.L. & Public Affairs, (April 2021), Professor Stephen Cody assesses empirical data from more than 140 countries to evaluate how autocrats in struggling democracies repurpose national security law to consolidate power.
“Democracies are declining worldwide,” he writes. “Lawmaking and judicial review can help to stabilize democracies and protect fundamental rights. But these safeguards can also be misused to facilitate democratic backsliding and empower ‘legalistic autocrats’ who deploy law to circumvent constitutional restraints on their power.”
The article documents widespread statutory vagueness in national security legislation used around the world to clamp down on dissent. He cites the unclear definition of terrorism in some legal statutes as an example of language that helps autocrats expand their powers.
Image by Michael J. Clarke
Return to Table of Contents
In “Dark Law: Legalistic Autocrats, Judicial Deference, and the Global Transformation of National Security” (University of Pennsylvania, J.L. & Public Affairs, April 2021), Professor Stephen Cody assesses empirical data from more than 140 countries to evaluate how autocrats in struggling democracies repurpose national security law to consolidate power.
“Democracies are declining worldwide,” he writes. “Lawmaking and judicial review can help to stabilize democracies and protect fundamental rights. But these safeguards can also be misused to facilitate democratic backsliding and empower ‘legalistic autocrats’ who deploy law to circumvent constitutional restraints on their power.”
The article documents widespread statutory vagueness in national security legislation used around the world to clamp down on dissent. He cites the unclear definition of terrorism in some legal statutes as an example of language that helps autocrats expand their powers.
Image by Michael J. Clarke
By Michael Fisch
Law Briefs
Return to Table of Contents
Suffolk Law Professor Stephen Cody