Autocratic Legalism Kim Lane Scheppele Upd [upd] Info

: Target political rivals and civil society groups by cutting their funding or imposing legal restrictions. Allow Intimidation

Consequences for democracy Autocratic legalism neutralizes institutional constraints while producing plausible deniability: leaders can claim to be acting lawfully. This erodes public trust, weakens independent institutions, and reduces avenues for peaceful political contestation. Over time, the legal system itself becomes an instrument of repression — impartial procedures exist, but outcomes are predictable. Internationally, autocratic legalism complicates foreign responses because actions often occur within a legal frame, making sanctions or interventions politically and legally fraught. autocratic legalism kim lane scheppele upd

Kim Lane Scheppele’s concept of describes a process where democratically elected leaders use their electoral mandates to dismantle constitutional checks and balances through legal means . Unlike traditional coups that use tanks and violence, autocratic legalists use the law to kill democracy. Core Definition : Target political rivals and civil society groups

Scheppele frequently cites under Viktor Orbán and Poland (under the PiS government) as primary examples. In these cases, the leaders rewrote constitutions or passed "reforms" that effectively neutered the judiciary while claiming they were merely modernizing or "de-communizing" the system. Over time, the legal system itself becomes an

: A common tactic involves "tinkering" with judicial tenure or standardizing appointments to ensure judges align with the executive's wishes. The University of Chicago Law Review Recent and Related Work Autocratic Legalism - The University of Chicago Law Review