Politics and Judicial Assertiveness in Emerging Democracies: High Court Behavior in Malawi and Zambia

Abstract

Focused on High Court behavior in Malawi and Zambia, this article examines the factors affecting judicial assertiveness vis a vis other power-holders in the state. Drawing from strategic understandings of judicial decisionmaking, the analysis focuses on whether and how political factors shape judicial behavior. The findings lend support for those who have emphasized such factors, in particular by indicating that judicial assertiveness is somewhat dependent on larger political conditions. The findings also suggest that the strategic view can be refined. For one, scholars should more directly consider how political factors interact with judicial preferences to shape decisionmaking. Further, scholars should appreciate how political conditions may encourage judges to embrace positions of political neutrality.