Local Justice

Local Justice

Author: Jon Elster

Publisher: Russell Sage Foundation

Published: 1992-05-14

Total Pages: 294

ISBN-13: 1610441834

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The well-being of individuals routinely depends on their success in obtaining goods and avoiding burdens distributed by society. Local Justice offers the first systematic analysis of the principles and procedures used in dispensing "local justice" in situations as varied as the admission of students to college, the choice of patients for organ transplants, the selection of workers for layoffs, and the induction of men into the army. A prominent theorist in the field of rational choice and decision making, Jon Elster develops a rich selection of empirical examples and case studies to demonstrate the diversity of procedures used by institutions that mete out local justice. From this revealing material Elster fashions a conceptual framework for understanding why institutions make these crucial allocations in the ways they do. Elster's investigation discloses the many complex and varied approaches of such decision-making bodies as selective service and adoption agencies, employers and universities, prison and immigration authorities. What are the conflicting demands placed on these institutions by the needs of applicants, the recommendations of external agencies, and their own organizational imperatives? Often, as Elster shows, methods of allocation may actually aggravate social problems. For instance, the likelihood that handicapped or minority infants will be adopted is further decreased when agencies apply the same stringent screening criteria—exclusion of people over forty, single parents, working wives, and low-income families—that they use for more sought-after babies. Elster proposes a classification of the main principles and procedures used to match goods with individuals, charts the interactions among these mechanisms of local justice, and evaluates them in terms of fairness and efficiency. From his empirical groundwork, Elster builds an innovative analysis of the historical processes by which, at given times and under given circumstances, preferences become principles and principles become procedures. Local Justice concludes with a comparison of local justice systems with major contemporary theories of social justice—utilitarianism, John Rawls's A Theory of Justice, Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia—and discusses the "common-sense conception of justice" held by professional decision makers such as lawyers, economists, and politicians. The difference between what we say about justice and how we actually dispense it is the illuminating principle behind Elster's book. A perceptive and cosmopolitan study, Local Justice is a seminal work for all those concerned with the formation of ethical policy and social welfare—philosophers, economists, political scientists, health care professionals, policy makers, and educators.


Book Synopsis Local Justice by : Jon Elster

Download or read book Local Justice written by Jon Elster and published by Russell Sage Foundation. This book was released on 1992-05-14 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The well-being of individuals routinely depends on their success in obtaining goods and avoiding burdens distributed by society. Local Justice offers the first systematic analysis of the principles and procedures used in dispensing "local justice" in situations as varied as the admission of students to college, the choice of patients for organ transplants, the selection of workers for layoffs, and the induction of men into the army. A prominent theorist in the field of rational choice and decision making, Jon Elster develops a rich selection of empirical examples and case studies to demonstrate the diversity of procedures used by institutions that mete out local justice. From this revealing material Elster fashions a conceptual framework for understanding why institutions make these crucial allocations in the ways they do. Elster's investigation discloses the many complex and varied approaches of such decision-making bodies as selective service and adoption agencies, employers and universities, prison and immigration authorities. What are the conflicting demands placed on these institutions by the needs of applicants, the recommendations of external agencies, and their own organizational imperatives? Often, as Elster shows, methods of allocation may actually aggravate social problems. For instance, the likelihood that handicapped or minority infants will be adopted is further decreased when agencies apply the same stringent screening criteria—exclusion of people over forty, single parents, working wives, and low-income families—that they use for more sought-after babies. Elster proposes a classification of the main principles and procedures used to match goods with individuals, charts the interactions among these mechanisms of local justice, and evaluates them in terms of fairness and efficiency. From his empirical groundwork, Elster builds an innovative analysis of the historical processes by which, at given times and under given circumstances, preferences become principles and principles become procedures. Local Justice concludes with a comparison of local justice systems with major contemporary theories of social justice—utilitarianism, John Rawls's A Theory of Justice, Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia—and discusses the "common-sense conception of justice" held by professional decision makers such as lawyers, economists, and politicians. The difference between what we say about justice and how we actually dispense it is the illuminating principle behind Elster's book. A perceptive and cosmopolitan study, Local Justice is a seminal work for all those concerned with the formation of ethical policy and social welfare—philosophers, economists, political scientists, health care professionals, policy makers, and educators.

Local Justice

Local Justice

Author: Jon Elster

Publisher: Russell Sage Foundation

Published: 1992-05-14

Total Pages: 308

ISBN-13: 9780871542311

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The well-being of individuals routinely depends on their success in obtaining goods and avoiding burdens distributed by society. Local Justice offers the first systematic analysis of the principles and procedures used in dispensing "local justice" in situations as varied as the admission of students to college, the choice of patients for organ transplants, the selection of workers for layoffs, and the induction of men into the army. A prominent theorist in the field of rational choice and decision making, Jon Elster develops a rich selection of empirical examples and case studies to demonstrate the diversity of procedures used by institutions that mete out local justice. From this revealing material Elster fashions a conceptual framework for understanding why institutions make these crucial allocations in the ways they do. Elster's investigation discloses the many complex and varied approaches of such decision-making bodies as selective service and adoption agencies, employers and universities, prison and immigration authorities. What are the conflicting demands placed on these institutions by the needs of applicants, the recommendations of external agencies, and their own organizational imperatives? Often, as Elster shows, methods of allocation may actually aggravate social problems. For instance, the likelihood that handicapped or minority infants will be adopted is further decreased when agencies apply the same stringent screening criteria—exclusion of people over forty, single parents, working wives, and low-income families—that they use for more sought-after babies. Elster proposes a classification of the main principles and procedures used to match goods with individuals, charts the interactions among these mechanisms of local justice, and evaluates them in terms of fairness and efficiency. From his empirical groundwork, Elster builds an innovative analysis of the historical processes by which, at given times and under given circumstances, preferences become principles and principles become procedures. Local Justice concludes with a comparison of local justice systems with major contemporary theories of social justice—utilitarianism, John Rawls's A Theory of Justice, Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia—and discusses the "common-sense conception of justice" held by professional decision makers such as lawyers, economists, and politicians. The difference between what we say about justice and how we actually dispense it is the illuminating principle behind Elster's book. A perceptive and cosmopolitan study, Local Justice is a seminal work for all those concerned with the formation of ethical policy and social welfare—philosophers, economists, political scientists, health care professionals, policy makers, and educators.


Book Synopsis Local Justice by : Jon Elster

Download or read book Local Justice written by Jon Elster and published by Russell Sage Foundation. This book was released on 1992-05-14 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The well-being of individuals routinely depends on their success in obtaining goods and avoiding burdens distributed by society. Local Justice offers the first systematic analysis of the principles and procedures used in dispensing "local justice" in situations as varied as the admission of students to college, the choice of patients for organ transplants, the selection of workers for layoffs, and the induction of men into the army. A prominent theorist in the field of rational choice and decision making, Jon Elster develops a rich selection of empirical examples and case studies to demonstrate the diversity of procedures used by institutions that mete out local justice. From this revealing material Elster fashions a conceptual framework for understanding why institutions make these crucial allocations in the ways they do. Elster's investigation discloses the many complex and varied approaches of such decision-making bodies as selective service and adoption agencies, employers and universities, prison and immigration authorities. What are the conflicting demands placed on these institutions by the needs of applicants, the recommendations of external agencies, and their own organizational imperatives? Often, as Elster shows, methods of allocation may actually aggravate social problems. For instance, the likelihood that handicapped or minority infants will be adopted is further decreased when agencies apply the same stringent screening criteria—exclusion of people over forty, single parents, working wives, and low-income families—that they use for more sought-after babies. Elster proposes a classification of the main principles and procedures used to match goods with individuals, charts the interactions among these mechanisms of local justice, and evaluates them in terms of fairness and efficiency. From his empirical groundwork, Elster builds an innovative analysis of the historical processes by which, at given times and under given circumstances, preferences become principles and principles become procedures. Local Justice concludes with a comparison of local justice systems with major contemporary theories of social justice—utilitarianism, John Rawls's A Theory of Justice, Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia—and discusses the "common-sense conception of justice" held by professional decision makers such as lawyers, economists, and politicians. The difference between what we say about justice and how we actually dispense it is the illuminating principle behind Elster's book. A perceptive and cosmopolitan study, Local Justice is a seminal work for all those concerned with the formation of ethical policy and social welfare—philosophers, economists, political scientists, health care professionals, policy makers, and educators.

Lynching and Local Justice

Lynching and Local Justice

Author: Danielle F. Jung

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2020-09-17

Total Pages: 95

ISBN-13: 1108888607

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What are the social and political consequences of poor state governance and low state legitimacy? Under what conditions does lynching – lethal, extralegal group violence to punish offenses to the community – become an acceptable practice? We argue lynching emerges when neither the state nor its challengers have a monopoly over legitimate authority. When authority is contested or ambiguous, mass punishment for transgressions can emerge that is public, brutal, and requires broad participation. Using new cross-national data, we demonstrate lynching is a persistent problem in dozens of countries over the last four decades. Drawing on original survey and interview data from Haiti and South Africa, we show how lynching emerges and becomes accepted. Specifically, support for lynching most likely occurs in one of three conditions: when states fail to provide governance, when non-state actors provide social services, or when neighbors must rely on self-help.


Book Synopsis Lynching and Local Justice by : Danielle F. Jung

Download or read book Lynching and Local Justice written by Danielle F. Jung and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2020-09-17 with total page 95 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What are the social and political consequences of poor state governance and low state legitimacy? Under what conditions does lynching – lethal, extralegal group violence to punish offenses to the community – become an acceptable practice? We argue lynching emerges when neither the state nor its challengers have a monopoly over legitimate authority. When authority is contested or ambiguous, mass punishment for transgressions can emerge that is public, brutal, and requires broad participation. Using new cross-national data, we demonstrate lynching is a persistent problem in dozens of countries over the last four decades. Drawing on original survey and interview data from Haiti and South Africa, we show how lynching emerges and becomes accepted. Specifically, support for lynching most likely occurs in one of three conditions: when states fail to provide governance, when non-state actors provide social services, or when neighbors must rely on self-help.

Balancing the Scales of Justice

Balancing the Scales of Justice

Author: Anthony Crubaugh

Publisher: Penn State University Press

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780271020778

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Recent revisionist history has questioned the degree of social change attributable to the French Revolution. In Balancing the Scales of Justice, Anthony Crubaugh tests this claim by examining the effects of revolutionary changes in local justice on the inhabitants of one region in rural France. Crubaugh illuminates two poorly understood institutions in eighteenth-century France: seigneurial justice and the revolutionary justice of the peace. He finds that justice was typically slow and expensive in the lords' courts, thus making it difficult for rural inhabitants to benefit from official channels of justice. By contrast, revolutionary reforms gave people the opportunity to submit quarrels to trusted and elected justices of the peace who adjudicated disputes quickly and inexpensively. By juxtaposing seigneurial justice in the ancien régime with the institution of the justice of the peace after 1789, Crubaugh highlights how revolutionary changes in the system of dispute resolution profoundly affected members of rural French society and their relations with the French state. Over time rural dwellers came to accept the primacy of the state in resolving disputes, and the state thereby partially achieved its long-standing goal of penetrating rural areas.


Book Synopsis Balancing the Scales of Justice by : Anthony Crubaugh

Download or read book Balancing the Scales of Justice written by Anthony Crubaugh and published by Penn State University Press. This book was released on 2001 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recent revisionist history has questioned the degree of social change attributable to the French Revolution. In Balancing the Scales of Justice, Anthony Crubaugh tests this claim by examining the effects of revolutionary changes in local justice on the inhabitants of one region in rural France. Crubaugh illuminates two poorly understood institutions in eighteenth-century France: seigneurial justice and the revolutionary justice of the peace. He finds that justice was typically slow and expensive in the lords' courts, thus making it difficult for rural inhabitants to benefit from official channels of justice. By contrast, revolutionary reforms gave people the opportunity to submit quarrels to trusted and elected justices of the peace who adjudicated disputes quickly and inexpensively. By juxtaposing seigneurial justice in the ancien régime with the institution of the justice of the peace after 1789, Crubaugh highlights how revolutionary changes in the system of dispute resolution profoundly affected members of rural French society and their relations with the French state. Over time rural dwellers came to accept the primacy of the state in resolving disputes, and the state thereby partially achieved its long-standing goal of penetrating rural areas.

Human Rights & Gender Violence

Human Rights & Gender Violence

Author: Sally Engle Merry

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2009-07-27

Total Pages: 280

ISBN-13: 0226520757

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Human rights law and the legal protection of women from violence are still fairly new concepts. As a result, substantial discrepancies exist between what is decided in the halls of the United Nations and what women experience on a daily basis in their communities. Human Rights and Gender Violence is an ambitious study that investigates the tensions between global law and local justice. As an observer of UN diplomatic negotiations as well as the workings of grassroots feminist organizations in several countries, Sally Engle Merry offers an insider's perspective on how human rights law holds authorities accountable for the protection of citizens even while reinforcing and expanding state power. Providing legal and anthropological perspectives, Merry contends that human rights law must be framed in local terms to be accepted and effective in altering existing social hierarchies. Gender violence in particular, she argues, is rooted in deep cultural and religious beliefs, so change is often vehemently resisted by the communities perpetrating the acts of aggression. A much-needed exploration of how local cultures appropriate and enact international human rights law, this book will be of enormous value to students of gender studies and anthropology alike.


Book Synopsis Human Rights & Gender Violence by : Sally Engle Merry

Download or read book Human Rights & Gender Violence written by Sally Engle Merry and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2009-07-27 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Human rights law and the legal protection of women from violence are still fairly new concepts. As a result, substantial discrepancies exist between what is decided in the halls of the United Nations and what women experience on a daily basis in their communities. Human Rights and Gender Violence is an ambitious study that investigates the tensions between global law and local justice. As an observer of UN diplomatic negotiations as well as the workings of grassroots feminist organizations in several countries, Sally Engle Merry offers an insider's perspective on how human rights law holds authorities accountable for the protection of citizens even while reinforcing and expanding state power. Providing legal and anthropological perspectives, Merry contends that human rights law must be framed in local terms to be accepted and effective in altering existing social hierarchies. Gender violence in particular, she argues, is rooted in deep cultural and religious beliefs, so change is often vehemently resisted by the communities perpetrating the acts of aggression. A much-needed exploration of how local cultures appropriate and enact international human rights law, this book will be of enormous value to students of gender studies and anthropology alike.

Comparative Criminal Justice Systems

Comparative Criminal Justice Systems

Author: Shahid M. Shahidullah

Publisher: Jones & Bartlett Publishers

Published: 2012

Total Pages: 577

ISBN-13: 1449604250

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Written for students of criminal justice, Comparative Criminal Justice Systems: Global and Local Perspectives examines the nature of crime and justice in varying countries and cultures in North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Using a topical approach, it compares different systems of crime and justice in terms of their differences from, and similarities to, the laws and institutions of modern criminal justice, focusing on the United States as a standard of comparison. By examining different criminal justice systems in terms of their local peculiarities and understanding their change and continuity, readers will gain a well-rounded international perspective of the world's varying systems of criminal justice. Key Features: -Explores the rise of modern criminology and the criminal justice system in the nineteenth century. It is critical for students to understand the history of modern systems to fully comprehend the varying nature of today's main legal systems, focusing on the United States as a standard of comparison. -Employs a topical approach to examine the criminal justice systems in varying countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America, including comparative views on law enforcement, judicial systems, corrections, due process of law, and search and seizures. -Includes discussions on comparative processes of criminalization and decriminalization on such issues as domestic violence, child abuse, homosexuality, and sexual harassment. -Discusses new global crimes and their impact on modern and traditional criminal justice systems, including human smuggling, global sex trade, global illegal drug trade, illegal trafficking of conventional military weapons, money laundering, cybercrime, and global terrorism. -Discussion questions ensure that student's grasp the core theoretical concepts.


Book Synopsis Comparative Criminal Justice Systems by : Shahid M. Shahidullah

Download or read book Comparative Criminal Justice Systems written by Shahid M. Shahidullah and published by Jones & Bartlett Publishers. This book was released on 2012 with total page 577 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written for students of criminal justice, Comparative Criminal Justice Systems: Global and Local Perspectives examines the nature of crime and justice in varying countries and cultures in North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Using a topical approach, it compares different systems of crime and justice in terms of their differences from, and similarities to, the laws and institutions of modern criminal justice, focusing on the United States as a standard of comparison. By examining different criminal justice systems in terms of their local peculiarities and understanding their change and continuity, readers will gain a well-rounded international perspective of the world's varying systems of criminal justice. Key Features: -Explores the rise of modern criminology and the criminal justice system in the nineteenth century. It is critical for students to understand the history of modern systems to fully comprehend the varying nature of today's main legal systems, focusing on the United States as a standard of comparison. -Employs a topical approach to examine the criminal justice systems in varying countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America, including comparative views on law enforcement, judicial systems, corrections, due process of law, and search and seizures. -Includes discussions on comparative processes of criminalization and decriminalization on such issues as domestic violence, child abuse, homosexuality, and sexual harassment. -Discusses new global crimes and their impact on modern and traditional criminal justice systems, including human smuggling, global sex trade, global illegal drug trade, illegal trafficking of conventional military weapons, money laundering, cybercrime, and global terrorism. -Discussion questions ensure that student's grasp the core theoretical concepts.

The Collapse of American Criminal Justice

The Collapse of American Criminal Justice

Author: William J. Stuntz

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 2011-09-30

Total Pages: 425

ISBN-13: 0674051750

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Rule of law has vanished in America’s criminal justice system. Prosecutors decide whom to punish; most accused never face a jury; policing is inconsistent; plea bargaining is rampant; and draconian sentencing fills prisons with mostly minority defendants. A leading criminal law scholar looks to history for the roots of these problems—and solutions.


Book Synopsis The Collapse of American Criminal Justice by : William J. Stuntz

Download or read book The Collapse of American Criminal Justice written by William J. Stuntz and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2011-09-30 with total page 425 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rule of law has vanished in America’s criminal justice system. Prosecutors decide whom to punish; most accused never face a jury; policing is inconsistent; plea bargaining is rampant; and draconian sentencing fills prisons with mostly minority defendants. A leading criminal law scholar looks to history for the roots of these problems—and solutions.

The Justice Laboratory

The Justice Laboratory

Author: Kerstin Bree Carlson

Publisher: Brookings Institution Press

Published: 2023-03-14

Total Pages: 178

ISBN-13: 0815738145

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Examining how international criminal law has—and hasn't—brought justice following war crimes in Africa Ever since World War II, the United Nations and other international actors have created laws, treaties, and institutions to punish perpetrators of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. These efforts have established universally recognized norms and have resulted in several high-profile convictions in egregious cases. But international criminal justice now seems to be a declining force—its energy sapped by long delays in prosecutions, lagging public attention, and a globally rising authoritarianism that disregards legal niceties. This book reviews five examples of international criminal justice as they have been applied across Africa, where brutal civil conflicts in recent decades resulted in varying degrees of global attention and action. The first three chapters examine key international mechanisms: the International Criminal Court, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and the hybrid tribunal established in Senegal to try state crimes committed in Chad. These chapters illustrate how the design and practice of the institutions led to similarly unexpected and unsatisfying outcomes. The final two chapters examine emerging and proposed international criminal justice mechanisms. One is a tribunal intended to facilitate peace in the new but war-torn country of South Sudan, not yet operational and unlikely to perform better than its predecessors. Finally, the book considers the developing human rights practice of the little-studied East African Court, a regional commercial court in Arusha, Tanzania, to show how local judicial creativity can win a role for courts in facilitating good governance. Written in an accessible style, this book explores the connections between politics and the doctrine of international criminal law. Highlighting little-known institutional examples and under-discussed political situations, the book contributes to a broader international understanding of African politics and international criminal justice, as well as the lessons the African experiences offer for other regions.


Book Synopsis The Justice Laboratory by : Kerstin Bree Carlson

Download or read book The Justice Laboratory written by Kerstin Bree Carlson and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2023-03-14 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examining how international criminal law has—and hasn't—brought justice following war crimes in Africa Ever since World War II, the United Nations and other international actors have created laws, treaties, and institutions to punish perpetrators of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. These efforts have established universally recognized norms and have resulted in several high-profile convictions in egregious cases. But international criminal justice now seems to be a declining force—its energy sapped by long delays in prosecutions, lagging public attention, and a globally rising authoritarianism that disregards legal niceties. This book reviews five examples of international criminal justice as they have been applied across Africa, where brutal civil conflicts in recent decades resulted in varying degrees of global attention and action. The first three chapters examine key international mechanisms: the International Criminal Court, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and the hybrid tribunal established in Senegal to try state crimes committed in Chad. These chapters illustrate how the design and practice of the institutions led to similarly unexpected and unsatisfying outcomes. The final two chapters examine emerging and proposed international criminal justice mechanisms. One is a tribunal intended to facilitate peace in the new but war-torn country of South Sudan, not yet operational and unlikely to perform better than its predecessors. Finally, the book considers the developing human rights practice of the little-studied East African Court, a regional commercial court in Arusha, Tanzania, to show how local judicial creativity can win a role for courts in facilitating good governance. Written in an accessible style, this book explores the connections between politics and the doctrine of international criminal law. Highlighting little-known institutional examples and under-discussed political situations, the book contributes to a broader international understanding of African politics and international criminal justice, as well as the lessons the African experiences offer for other regions.

Cultivating Food Justice

Cultivating Food Justice

Author: Alison Hope Alkon

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 405

ISBN-13: 0262016265

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Documents how racial and social inequalities are built into our food system, and how communities are creating environmentally sustainable and socially just alternatives.


Book Synopsis Cultivating Food Justice by : Alison Hope Alkon

Download or read book Cultivating Food Justice written by Alison Hope Alkon and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2011 with total page 405 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Documents how racial and social inequalities are built into our food system, and how communities are creating environmentally sustainable and socially just alternatives.

Transitional Justice

Transitional Justice

Author: Alexander Laban Hinton

Publisher: Rutgers University Press

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 0813550688

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"The origins of this project date back to a 2007 symposium, 'Local justice : global mechanisms and local meanings in the aftermath of mass atrocity, ' held at Rutgers University--Newark [N.J.] ... Several participants later presented papers in a session at the July 2007 meeting of the International Association of Genocide Scholars, which was held in Bosnia and Herzegovina."--Acknowledgments.


Book Synopsis Transitional Justice by : Alexander Laban Hinton

Download or read book Transitional Justice written by Alexander Laban Hinton and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 2011 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The origins of this project date back to a 2007 symposium, 'Local justice : global mechanisms and local meanings in the aftermath of mass atrocity, ' held at Rutgers University--Newark [N.J.] ... Several participants later presented papers in a session at the July 2007 meeting of the International Association of Genocide Scholars, which was held in Bosnia and Herzegovina."--Acknowledgments.