Judging under Constraint: The Politics of Deference by International Courts

Theresa Squatrito

doi:10.1017/9781009607636

As international courts have risen in prominence, policymakers, practitioners and scholars observe variation in judicial deference. Sometimes international courts defer, whereby they accept a state's exercise of authority, and other times not. Differences can be seen in case outcomes, legal interpretation and reasoning, and remedial orders. How can we explain variation in deference? This book examines deference by international courts, offering a novel theoretical account. It argues that deference is explained by a court's strategic space, which is structured by formal independence, seen as a dimension of institutional design, and state preferences. An empirical analysis built on original data of the East African Court of Justice, Caribbean Court of Justice, and African Court of Human and Peoples' Rights demonstrates that robust safeguards to independence and politically fragmented memberships lend legitimacy to courts and make collective state resistance infeasible, combining to minimize deference. Persuasive argumentation and public legitimation also enable nondeference. This title is also available as open access on Cambridge Core

- Aa Reduce text
- Aa Enlarge text

View selected items
Save to my bookmarks
Export citations
Download PDF (zip)
Save to Kindle
Save to Dropbox
Save to Google Drive
Save content to
To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to .

To save content items to your Kindle, first ensure no-reply@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Please be advised that item(s) you selected are not available.
You are about to save
Your Kindle email address

Please provide your Kindle email.

@free.kindle.com @kindle.com (service fees apply)

By using this service, you agree that you will only keep content for personal use, and will not openly distribute them via Dropbox, Google Drive or other file sharing services

Contents

Judging under Constraint
pp i-i
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Studies on International Courts and Tribunals - Series page
pp ii-iv
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Judging under Constraint - Title page
pp v-v
The Politics of Deference by International Courts
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Copyright page
pp vi-vi
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Dedication
pp vii-viii
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Contents
pp ix-ix
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Figures
pp x-x
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Tables
pp xi-xii
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Acknowledgments
pp xiii-xiv
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Cited Legal Texts
pp xv-xvi
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Abbreviations
pp xvii-xviii
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

1 - Introduction
pp 1-21
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

2 - Judicial Deference and the Strategic Space of International Courts
pp 22-61
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

3 - Formal Independence of International Courts
pp 62-83
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

4 - The East African Court of Justice
pp 84-138
Pervasive Constraints and Substantial Deference
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

5 - The Caribbean Court of Justice
pp 139-198
Intermediate Constraints and Moderate Deference
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

6 - The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights
pp 199-256
Subtle Constraints and Minimal Deference
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

7 - Conclusion
pp 257-287
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Appendix
pp 288-315
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

References
pp 316-347
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Index
pp 348-358
- - You have access
  - Open access
- PDF
- HTML
- Export citation

Metrics

Altmetric attention score

Total number of HTML views: 0

Total number of PDF views: 0 *

Loading metrics...

Total views: 0 *

Loading metrics...

* Views captured on Cambridge Core between #date#. This data will be updated every 24 hours.

Usage data cannot currently be displayed.

Why this information is here

This section outlines the accessibility features of this content - including support for screen readers, full keyboard navigation and high-contrast display options. This may not be relevant for you.

Accessibility Information

The HTML of this book complies with version 2.2 of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), offering more comprehensive accessibility measures for a broad range of users and attains the highest (AAA) level of WCAG compliance, optimising the user experience by meeting the most extensive accessibility guidelines.

Content Navigation

Table of contents navigation

Allows you to navigate directly to chapters, sections, or non‐text items through a linked table of contents, reducing the need for extensive scrolling.

Index navigation

Provides an interactive index, letting you go straight to where a term or subject appears in the text without manual searching.

Reading Order and Textual Equivalents

Single logical reading order

You will encounter all content (including footnotes, captions, etc.) in a clear, sequential flow, making it easier to follow with assistive tools like screen readers.

Short alternative textual descriptions

You get concise descriptions (for images, charts, or media clips), ensuring you do not miss crucial information when visual or audio elements are not accessible.

Full alternative textual descriptions

You get more than just short alt text: you have comprehensive text equivalents, transcripts, captions, or audio descriptions for substantial non‐text content, which is especially helpful for complex visuals or multimedia.

Visual Accessibility

Use of colour is not sole means of conveying information

You will still understand key ideas or prompts without relying solely on colour, which is especially helpful if you have colour vision deficiencies.

Use of high contrast between text and background colour

You benefit from high‐contrast text, which improves legibility if you have low vision or if you are reading in less‐than‐ideal lighting conditions.

Judging under Constraint

The Politics of Deference by International Courts

Book description

Refine List

Actions for selected content:

Save Search