Courses

    Policy makers and technical experts engaged in efforts to help stabilize and rebuild societies emerging from violent conflict increasingly cite establishment of the rule of law as a first-order priority. This course will help students develop an understanding of the strategies and methodologies employed by international actors engaged in rule of law development, and the legal and policy dilemmas implicated by such activities. We will begin by exploring what is meant by 'establishing the rule of law' in the context of a post-conflict state, and by examining critiques of this emerging field of practice. Subsequent sessions will address some of the principal substantive areas in which domestic reformers and their international advisers and funders engage in rule of law building, including, for example, law reform, judicial reform, anti-corruption work, and ‘legal empowerment.’ Readings and discussion will critically appraise the work of foreign assistance agencies, the United Nations and other international organizations, and domestic government actors in post-conflict and transitional states. Students will be expected to participate in class discussion and to prepare a paper.