How Politics Travels from the Streets to the Courts, and Back Again
Routledge
In contemporary politics, the juridification of politics has become one of the most notable trends, reflecting the growing use of law by both state and non-state actors to assert claims and advance their political strategies.
Juridification is often described as a depoliticizing process, and sometimes even as a democratizing one, frequently linked to the logics of neoliberal governance.
In this context, judicial intervention is commonly seen as an institutional shortcut, allowing a small number of actors to influence political change outside representative institutions, thus bypassing the democratic will.
This book challenges that perspective. By tracing the genealogy of this phenomenon and examining its performative role in contemporary democratic practices, it offers a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between juridification and democracy.
Combining theoretical analysis with case studies on human rights adjudication, the volume shows how courts have become arenas of political conflict, where the supra-legal values of democracy are articulated, claimed, and contested and how this process extends far beyond the courtroom, complementing – rather than replacing – democratic decision-making.