High-End Demand: The Legal Profession as a Source of Judicial Selection Reform in Urban China

• Published in: Law & social inquiry Vol. 40; no. 4; pp. 969 - 1000
• Main Author: Kinkel, Jonathan J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.09.2015; Wiley Periodicals; Cambridge University Press
• Subjects: Authoritarianism; Authoritarianism (Political ideology); Autonomy; Courts; Employment; Judges; Judicial process; Legal profession; Legal professions; Legal reform; Legal system; Politics; Reform; Selection procedures; Urban areas; Chengdu China; Shenzhen China; Shanghai China

Most studies of comparative judicial politics suggest that judicial autonomy emerges from democratic competition, but despite its authoritarian political system, China has introduced reforms that increase merit-based competition, transparency, and modest professional autonomy in local courts. Variat...