Military Courts, Civil-Military Relations, and the Legal Battle for Democracy: The Politics of Military Justice

This book examines the operation and reform of military courts in democratic countries, using a newly created dataset of 120 countries over two centuries. It provides a comprehensive picture of the evolution of military justice and offers a framework for understanding how civilian actors gain or lose legal control of the armed forces.

Format: Hardback
Length: 244 pages
Publication date: 23 December 2020
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

The complex interplay between military and civilian courts, the immense political power wielded by legal prerogatives within the armed forces, and the challenging obstacles faced by civilian politicians in reforming military justice remain largely overlooked, despite their profound implications for the well-being and sustainability of democratic systems. This groundbreaking book pioneers a theoretically robust, comprehensive analysis of the functioning and reform of military courts in democratic nations. By leveraging a newly assembled dataset encompassing 120 countries across a span of more than two centuries, it presents the first comprehensive account of the evolution of military justice across states and through time. Coupled with in-depth qualitative historical case studies of Colombia, Portugal, Indonesia, Fiji, Brazil, Pakistan, and the United States, the book offers a novel framework for comprehending how civilian actors can either secure or relinquish legal authority over the armed forces. The findings of this book hold significant implications for scholars and policymakers engaged in the fields of democracy, civil-military relations, human rights, and the rule of law.

The complex interplay between military and civilian courts, the immense political power wielded by legal prerogatives within the armed forces, and the challenging obstacles faced by civilian politicians in reforming military justice remain largely overlooked, despite their profound implications for the well-being and sustainability of democratic systems. This groundbreaking book pioneers a theoretically robust, comprehensive analysis of the functioning and reform of military courts in democratic nations. By leveraging a newly assembled dataset encompassing 120 countries across a span of more than two centuries, it presents the first comprehensive account of the evolution of military justice across states and through time. Coupled with in-depth qualitative historical case studies of Colombia, Portugal, Indonesia, Fiji, Brazil, Pakistan, and the United States, the book offers a novel framework for comprehending how civilian actors can either secure or relinquish legal authority over the armed forces. The findings of this book hold significant implications for scholars and policymakers engaged in the fields of democracy, civil-military relations, human rights, and the rule of law.

Weight: 452g
Dimension: 241 x 162 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367029944