Chairs:

• Francesco Biagi: francesco.biagi82@gmail.com
• Julien Jeanneney: jeanneney@unistra.fr
• Nicoletta Perlo: nicoletta.perlo@hotmail.fr

SPEAKERS

Celeste	Lo
Denis	Preshova
Giuseppe	Martinico
Mario Armando	Sandoval Islas
Pedro	Murta
Raphael	Girard
Renata	Cherubim
Thibaut	Larrouturou

Over the past few years a growing number of states have experienced a “reverse wave,” in which the rule of law is progressively replaced by the rule by law: the law is no longer understood by political leaders as a limit on power, but rather as an instrument to facilitate its expansion. These incremental processes of democratic erosion have often generated a “political gray zone” typical of hybrid systems — the so-called “illiberal democracies” — frequently led by populist forces. At the heart of this transformation lies the judiciary — understood broadly, encompassing ordinary courts, constitutional courts, supreme courts, but also judicial councils.

This workshop will investigate, from a comparative perspective, the role of the judiciary under illiberal-populist regimes. Several aspects will be considered, including: a) The tools commonly used by populist leaders to capture the judiciary; b) Why the judiciary is almost invariably targeted by illiberal leaders; c) How courts, once captured by illiberal-populist forces, evolve from institutions resisting authoritarian tendencies into central allies of the ruling majority; d) The reasoning of populist courts, which is often marked, inter alia, by the instrumentalization of liberal-democratic principles and a systematic opposition to international institutions; e) If and how Courts can protect a country from a process of democratic deterioration; f) The complex process of restoring judicial independence after a period of democratic decay.

Selected contributions to this workshop will be published in an edited volume or in a law journal.éger un pays d’un processus de détérioration démocratique ; f) Le processus complexe de restauration de l’indépendance judiciaire après une période de déclin démocratique.