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Conceptualizing and Measuring Rule of Law Constructs, 1850–2010

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 October 2022

Peter F. Nardulli ,
Buddy Peyton  and
Joseph Bajjalieh
Peter F. Nardulli
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Buddy Peyton
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Joseph Bajjalieh
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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Abstract

Abstract

This article outlines an effort to gauge cross-national and intertemporal differences in law-based orders for 165 nations from 1850 to 2010. Despite the increasing importance attributed to “the rule of law,” there have been few efforts to develop objective measures of it. The conceptual foundations for this effort rest on a review of centuries of scholarship concerning the societal utility of law. Data are drawn from a variety of sources to create two composite measures. The derivation of these measures is reported and the measures are examined to determine whether they present reinforcing profiles of a country's legal order.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Law and Courts , Volume 1 , Issue 1 , Spring 2013 , pp. 139 - 192
Copyright
© 2013 by the Law and Courts Organized Section of the American Political Science Association. All rights reserved.

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Footnotes

The authors wish to acknowledge the thoughtful comments of Tom Ginsburg, Jose Cheibub, and Matthew Winters on an earlier version of this article, as well as the insightful comments of three reviewers.

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