Thesis advisor: Jennie Purnell / Thesis advisor: Gerald Easter / This thesis seeks to explore how drug cartels achieved de facto sovereign control over the favelas of Rio de Janeiro between 2000 and 2010, effectively preventing the Brazilian state from guaranteeing the rule of law uniformly throughout national territory. It also investigates the extent to which Brazilian citizens have suffered human rights abuses as a result. Drawing on both primary and secondary evidence, I argue that drug cartels gained sovereignty over these enclaves as a combined result of state weakness and cartel strength. The Brazilian state forfeited these territories a century ago, because it was infrastructurally weak to such an extent that it was unable to systematically penetrate them in order to monopolize violence, enforce laws, and provide public services. The cartels, in turn, exploited the favelas as ideal locations for the transport, repackaging, and sale of drugs. Benefiting from the profits of illicit activities, the gangs transformed into well-armed, bellicose organizations that maintained authority over the communities by performing state-like duties. In due course, organized crime amassed sufficient control over the favelas to thwart most state encroachments. Examining the exceptions, I found that the limited police encroachments were largely rights abusive--save those made by the Pacifying Police Units. State weakness and cartel strength have disjointed the rule of law and undermined democracy in Brazil. / Thesis (MA) — Boston College, 2013. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Political Science.

The current state of China’s legal system is a popular subject of on-going academic debate. Most observers of the Chinese legal system have identified China as a state of rule by law. A smaller but increasing number of analysts tend to describe China as a deficient form of the rule of law. Instead, this dissertation departs from both of the conventional views, and argues that the CCP China is a state of the transitive legal system, a middle category different from both the rule of law and rule by law state. / Arguing that the two existing models are inadequate to explain China’s legal system in the reform era since 1978, the purpose of the thesis is to develop a new model, which aims to provide a coherent interpretation of the paradoxical state of the Chinese legal system. Through definitional and doctrinal analysis of the concept of the rule of law, and inspired by Lon Fuller’s account of the “internal morality of law”, the thesis puts forward an analytical framework of legal systems comprising of two variables. One is the legitimacy type of a regime, the other the regime’s lawmaking competence. These two variables correspond to the two fundamental constitutive elements of the rule of law, i.e. the regime’s commitment to the law and the formal qualities of the law. By the two variables, legal systems can be divided into five stable categories, namely, the rule of law, the deficient rule of law, the transitive legal system, the rule by law, and rule of men. Different types of legitimacy and levels of lawmaking competence of a regime determine the category of its legal system. / In comparison to both rule by law systems whose legitimacy mainly rely on non-legal source(s), and deficient rule of law states whose legitimacy primarily depend on the formal law but whose lawmaking competence is restricted, the thesis argues that China’s legal system belongs to the category of the transitive legal system whose legitimacy (performance legitimacy in the case of reform China) is in a transitive relation to the formal law and whose lawmaking competence is restricted. While the rule by law model fails to explain why the CCP regime has proactively pursued a formal legal system, the deficient rule of law model is incapable of responding to the fact that the CCP regime has not been subjected to institutionalized constraints of the law. The transitive legal system model provides a coherent explanation for the seemingly conflicting image of China’s legal system. / The concluding chapter also applies the framework to discuss the future development of China’s legal system on two analytical levels. It is argued that while, on the first level, the CCP China’s transitive legal system is moving toward the direction of the rule of law, on the second level, a paradigmatic change between types, either from the transitive legal system to the deficient rule of law state, or to the rule by law system, is unlikely to happen in the near future. The framework may also provide implications for rule of law promotion programs and might be useful for comparative studies of legal systems all over the world. / 中国的法律制度是什么性质？大多数人认为中国充其量是法制国家，权力不受限制。少量人认为中国是缺陷型法治。然而，本文认为，法制和法治两种理论都无法充分解释改革时代中国的法律制度。本文提出，改革时代的中国是一种传递性的法律体制，是介于法制和法治之间的一种新类型。 / 本文的目的在于发展一种新的分析框架，以更好地阐释充满矛盾现象的中国法律制度。通过概念和教义分析，受朗·富勒“法律内在德性”理论的启发，本文提出了一个由两个变量构成的分析框架，分别是政权合法性的类型及其立法能力。这两个变量对应于法治的两个要素：一个政权对法律的专注度，以及法律的形式合理性。不同的合法性类型和不同层次的立法能力组合起来，形成了五种稳定的法律体制，分别是法治、有缺陷的法治、传递性法律体制、法制，和人治。 / 法制国家的合法性来源于非法律的根源，而缺陷型法治国家的合法性主要来源于合乎理性的法律，但是这类国家的立法能力一般存在问题，使得法律在文本上和实践中都存在缺陷。本研究认为，当前中国属于传递性法律体制。一方面，它的合法性来源是绩效，这是一种传递性的法律合法性。换言之，合乎形式理性的法律之所以对统治者重要，是因为它有助于实现绩效目标。但是，当存在便利的非法律手段，或法律本身成为绩效实现的障碍之时，法律会受到损害或限制。另一方面，中国的立法能力也有所欠缺，直接导致法律存在诸多不符合“内在德性”的情况。这两方面特点决定了中国属于传递性法律体制。法制理论无法解释为什么中国发展出了相当程度的形式合理性法律，而法治理论则无法解释为什么中国的执政党没有受制于制度化的法律约束。传递性法律体制理论可以很好地解释这两个看上去相互矛盾的现象。 / 本文结论部分也用这个新的分析框架讨论中国法律制度的发展趋势。中国的传递性法律体制将会往法治的方向发展，但在短期内不太可能发生类型之间的突变，也就是说不会从目前的类型变回法制，或是发展为法治。这个分析框架也可用于世界上法律体制的比较研究，还可能对法治推广项目有所启发。 / Ye, Zhusheng. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2014. / Includes bibliographical references. / Abstracts also in Chinese. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on 14, September, 2016). / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only.

<p>A non-corrupt judiciary is a fundamental condition for the endorsement of rule of law and the ability to guarantee basic human rights in society. The judiciary must therefore be an independent and fair body that fights corruption, not the other way around. This essay systematizes different binding and non-binding international, and to some extent regional, norms and standards regarding corruption in the judiciary and judicial independence, and presents potential factors and effects of judicial corruption, through an inventory of documents recognized by organizations such as the United Nations and the Council of Europe. Further, the essay presents different anti-corruption strategies and the dilemma of implementing such strategies with regard to judicial independence. The advantages and disadvantages of different anti-corruption strategies are reviewed through the study of some successful and unsuccessful examples.</p><p>There are several definitions of corruption, this essay emanates from the definition of ‘abuse of office for personal or private gain’, a definition that is wide but yet well recognized. The factors of judicial corruption are many and often overlapping, but they vary from state to state and must hence be analyzed individually to find the factual reasons for what generates corruption. The effects are detrimental and break down the very core of rule of law and corrupt judges neglect fundamental principles such as equality, impartiality, propriety and integrity. With regard to the different factors and effects, the norms and standards, and the anti-corruption strategies, a discussion follows about how to rid the judiciary from corruption with preservation of the respect of judicial independence. The discussion also raises the predicament that malpractice of various fundamental principles e.g. judicial independence can occur and further distort unhealthy judiciaries. The main conclusion regarding anti-corruption strategies is that they must be carefully weighed against the principle of independence.</p>

A special role amongst various efforts to combat transnational criminal activity belongs to extradition, which has transformed into a form of international cooperation and became an indispensable tool for ensuring criminal responsibility in any part of the world. However, for a long period of time, an individual in the process of extradition has been treated as a passive object of intergovernmental relations which have a significant political component. In this thesis, the claim is that treatment of an individual as a rights bearer and an active subject of legal relationships among other parties of the process, combined with transfer of final decision-making right from the executive to judiciary branch of power, is capable to enable application of the Rule of law principles to particular extradition cases, limit broad discretion of decision makers and minimize political component of extradition.

A special role amongst various efforts to combat transnational criminal activity belongs to extradition, which has transformed into a form of international cooperation and became an indispensable tool for ensuring criminal responsibility in any part of the world. However, for a long period of time, an individual in the process of extradition has been treated as a passive object of intergovernmental relations which have a significant political component. In this thesis, the claim is that treatment of an individual as a rights bearer and an active subject of legal relationships among other parties of the process, combined with transfer of final decision-making right from the executive to judiciary branch of power, is capable to enable application of the Rule of law principles to particular extradition cases, limit broad discretion of decision makers and minimize political component of extradition.

This dissertation is mainly anchored in police administrative neutrality. First of all, according to political literature, it analyzes the role of the police when they execute the governance power in a state. Secondly, from police science literature, it explores the reasons the police involve with politics. Thirdly, based on legislative procedure, it analyzes the different opinions a government and legislature have regarding to ¡§civil service administrative neutrality.¡¨ This dissertation also, according to the study of administrative neutrality from foreign administrative law and professors, seeks the criterion of police administrative neutrality. Finally, throughout the previous media reports, it sorts out the police administrative bias and turns it into study material and judgmental source for this thesis. The author discovers three steps to examine police administrative neutrality, and delivers a case study: mass media expose police administrative bias during the police enforcement tasks of the 11th presidential election. 1. Rule of law: to analyze if the police achieves tasks based on law, and due process of law or standard operating procedures. 2. Execution Neutrality: to analyze if administrative discretion is proper and impartial according to administrative principles. 3. Administration Neutrality: to analyze if politics interferes with police duties. If this occurs, it may result in a partial administration. The police symbolize the governance power of a state, and play different roles as government changes. In an authoritarian state, the police are a tool to suppress people against the ruler; in a democratic state, police authority is restricted to a certain level. Lately, political environment and political party change has become normal. The police ought to acknowledge a truth; governments change but administrations remain. To strengthen democratic functions as the police performs duties, they should prioritize public interest, follow rule of law, adopt political policies, assure legality of human rights, maintain equality of political parties, and present the appropriate assistance to people in the specialization area of public order maintenance.

This research is to discuss the Chinese pre-Qin legalist school, Shang Yang's political thought. First, the purposes of the research are as follows: 1.To understand the background of Shang Yang¡¦s political thought and analyze the foundation of his political thought. 2.To discover the principles of Shang Yang¡¦s political thought. 3.From the principles of Shang Yang¡¦s political thought, analyze his political objectives. 4.To analyze Shang Yang¡¦s actual policies of agriculture and fight. 5.To sum up this research results to comment on Shang Yang's political thought. Therefore, based on the purposes of the research, the principles of Shang Yang¡¦s political thought is rule by law, attempt to achieve the powerful nation. The concrete method is the policies of the agriculture and fight. So, the following are the results of the analysis of this research: 1.Shang Yang advocates ¡¥rule by law.¡¦ 2.Shang Yang promotes anti-wisdom. 3.Shang Yang advocates despotism. 4.Shang Yang contends that clear reward and hard punishment can make the monarch rule smoothly. 5.Shang Yang proposes that the monarch rules by the system, rather than by man.

<p>Abstract:</p><p>The purpose of this study is to examine what actually makes Russia an incomplete democracy, despite of all the formal democratic institutions and legal democratic rights.</p><p>The research method used for this essay has been qualitative case study, which strives to answer two research questions: Which democratic principles are not respected in Russia? How does the executive power control the political arena? The theoretical framework used for this study consists of a model based on Dahls Polyarchy theory and the Rule of Law concept. The conclusions points out that very little have formally changed in Russia regarding democratic rights and the constitution. The democratic decline is due to political manoeuvres and undue political influence. There is no proper division of power and the executive powers are not controlled by a system of checks and balances. All democratic principles studied within the analytical framework are manipulated and formal rights are no longer respected by authorities and the executive power.</p>

Thesis (LL. M.)--York University, 2000. Graduate Programme in Law. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 258-279). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ56175.

Thesis (D. Jur.)--York University, 2001. Graduate Programme in Law. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 351-367). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pNQ67941.