Courts in Latin America [Paperback]

Explores the extent to which courts in Latin America protect individual rights and limit governments.This volume brings together today's leading scholars of judicial politics to explore the extent to which courts in Latin America protect individual rights and limit governments. Drawing on examples from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Bolivia, the authors demonstrate the widespread variation in the performance of Latin America's constitutional courts.This volume brings together today's leading scholars of judicial politics to explore the extent to which courts in Latin America protect individual rights and limit governments. Drawing on examples from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Bolivia, the authors demonstrate the widespread variation in the performance of Latin America's constitutional courts.To what extent do courts in Latin America protect individual rights and limit governments? This volume answers these fundamental questions by bringing together today's leading scholars of judicial politics. Drawing on examples from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Bolivia, the authors demonstrate that there is widespread variation in the performance of Latin America's constitutional courts. In accounting for this variation, the contributors push forward ongoing debates about what motivates judges; whether institutions, partisan politics, and public support shape interbranch relations; and the importance of judicial attitudes and legal culture. The authors deploy a range of methods, including qualitative case studies, paired country comparisons, statistical analysis, and game theory.Introduction: courts in Latin America Gretchen Helmke and Julio R?os-Figueroa; 1. Institutions for constitutional justice in Latin America Julio R?os-Figueroa; 2. Enforcing rights and exercising an accountability function: Costa Rica's Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court Bruce M. Wilson; 3. Strategic deferenlƒ&