Chapter Outline

This chapter considers how and why the role of courts, and indeed the judicial process more generally, has become more susceptible to comparative political analysis in recent years. It encompasses a discussion of how this topic has not as yet been central to the three approaches to the ‘new institutionalism’ which form the basis for this book, and how they can be used effectively. In particular, the chapter will examine the rise of judicial power, the centrality of the rule of law to theorising democracy and how a ‘political science’ approach can assist our understanding. The chapter concludes with two case studies.