Supreme courts can serve to check the actions of the executive and the legislature and interestingly we can find these judical institutions in both authoritarian and democratic societies alike. This suggests a puzzle. Why would a repressive state authority need a high court? How would they utilize an institution that is constructed to uphold political and civil rights against the government? In this project I examine if and how high courts serve to monitor or check executive power in a country experiencing democratic backsliding? Previous literature points to the importance of these questions in authoritarian countries, but we need further examination of courts in countries experiencing democratic backsliding. To examine these questions, I analyze the Supreme Court of the Philippines (SCP) under Rodrigo Duterte's term. I develop an original dataset and focus on rulings during the time period of 2016 to 2020. I code and analyze the case law to determine whether SCP judgments reinforce authoritative executive power or individual democratic rights and principles. I anticipate a trend in the case law that suggests the SCP is operating to uphold many of Duterte’s restrictive and oppressive executive actions. The SCP provides insightful information and conceptualization to better understand courts in constrained regimes and countries experiencing democratic backsliding. Further comparative research enables us to identify if this trend is unique to the Philippines or if there is a broader institutional pattern.

The concept of the separation of church and state was not a priority for the founders of the Irish Republic. Elements of the Catholic religion were woven into the Constitution, a reality that characterizes the laws in this country to this day. Despite this beginning, Ireland is transitioning away from a legal system and laws based on traditional and conservative religious values and adopting more progressive policies that reflect the current norms and values of society. In order to better understand this transition and how it is reflected in the legal system, I examine the legalization of abortion in Ireland focusing on the case law of the Supreme Court of Ireland and rulings regarding Irish reproductive rights by international courts. In this project, I assess whether the decline of traditional religious values in Irish society allowed the Irish Supreme Court to become more activist or progressive. To answer this question, I develop an original case law dataset from 1973 to 2010 coding the judgments for change in the legality of abortion. Further I utilize World Values Survey data to map changes in religious values during this time period. Preliminary results suggest that international pressure and change in the dominance of traditional and conservative religious values pushed the legalization of abortion. This research informs our general understandings of religious values and the legal system, and the role of courts in bringing change.

The establishment of Australia is defined by the injection of European explorers into a foreign land and a resulting development of disease and conflict within the native populations. These settlers stripped many Indigenous tribes of territory they occupied, claiming it for themselves under the doctrine of terra nullius, “nobody’s land”. Indigenous Australians have faced an uphill battle to regain these rights and territory, yet their cause has unfolded in a country with a robust body of constitutional rights and a powerful high court. In this project, I examine the apex court in Australia, the High Court of Australia (HCA), analyzing the trends of indigenous civil rights rulings. Through an in-depth historical analysis of key case law in which the HCA has influenced indigenous rights, I assess whether or not decisions have advanced the interests of Indigenous people. To answer, I develop an original case law dataset ranging from 1979 to 2020. Within this dataset, I code for whether the court advanced or held back the interests of Indigenous Australians. Preliminary findings suggest that the HCA has not hesitated to remedy the historical wrongdoings within the country. That said, Indigenous Australians continue to face racial discrimination in many sectors of society and governing institutions. The findings raise broader comparative questions of the ability of courts to bring widespread social change.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) rules on controversial human rights cases in Russia to carry out the country's commitment to the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). However, over the past 30 years, Russia has sought to disregard its membership in the Council of Europe by overruling ECtHR rulings. In 2015, Russia passed Law no. 7-FKZ to allow the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation the ability to overrule the ECtHR’s rulings, when deemed in conflict with the Constitution of the Russian Federation. To decipher the impact of Russian Law no. 7-FKZ, I investigate the implementation of ECtHR rulings before and after 2015. This project examines the consolidating democracy of Russia's attempt to disregard international law by tightening access to courts, overruling and limiting the implementation of ECtHR rulings, and limiting individual freedoms and liberties. To answer, I develop an original case law dataset from 2014 to 2020 that includes the key ECtHR cases involving Russia. I code for the implementation level of ECtHR judgments to determine Russia’s ability to obstruct ECtHR judgments, after the enactment of Law no. 7-FKZ. Preliminary findings suggest that Russia is successful in limiting the reach of international law. These findings suggest de-democratizing nations have the ability to isolate on an international level, highlighting the struggles international courts may face when their legitimacy is challenged.

After India’s independence from British colonial rule in 1947, the Constitution of India was written to provide certain freedoms to its citizens. Arguably one of the most important freedoms, the right to freedom of speech and expression, was provided in Article 19 (1) after the dissolution of British rule. Though its scope was wide, its expression was not absolute; The State, as defined in Article 19 (2) of the Constitution, can impose reasonable restrictions on this freedom. The implications are vast, as seen in several cases relating to freedom of speech and expression. India also continues to employ the Indian Penal Code (IPC), a colonial document that was employed to silence native dissent during British rule. In this project, I examine the ways in which the Indian Supreme Court grants freedom of speech and expression or moves to criminalize it. The project examines Supreme Court decisions centering on freedom of speech and expression, and explores the varying laws that inform those decisions. To answer, I develop an original case law dataset ranging from 2000 to 2020. Through an in-depth historical analysis of key cases on freedom of speech and expression, I code for whether the court expands or denies those rights, the types of disputes and litigants involved, and the laws or articles invoked. Preliminary findings suggest that the Supreme Court often cites the Indian Penal Code alone when moving to criminalize freedom of speech or expression, and often does so when cases relate to obscenity or defamation. These findings provide context for larger questions regarding the historical roots of laws that shape the current experience of individual rights in post-colonial nations, and also provides insight into the role courts play in upholding or constraining the fundamental rights of freedom of speech and expression.

Mexico underwent a dramatic cultural revolution in 1920, and from this revolution sprung a new type of art. ‘Los Tres Grandes,’ as they came to be known, were three men, Rivera, Orozco, and Siqueiros, who painted legendary murals depicting anti-capitalist and Revolutionary themes. This paper discusses the works of David Alfaro Siqueiros, a revolutionary Mexican mural painter, and his involvement in the Modernist movement in the United States. I first explore Siqueiros’ Los Angeles mural America Tropical and argue that he created it to be a strong political statement in a time of national turmoil. I explore the iconology and iconography of the piece that combined ancient Maya symbolism with modern techniques, creating a wholly new form of publicly available art. I also highlighted the importance of the location of this mural in a Los Angeles district that relies on white tourism for survival, and contrasted it with a mural highlighting the suffering of Indigenous people in the United States and America as a whole. Focusing on his time spent in the United States, I also explore his artist-relationship with the modernist painter Jackson Pollock and Siqueiros’ apparent influences on his style. Finally, I will discuss the influences that Los Angeles art culture had on Siqueiros, including a change in his mural style from individualistic to collectivist.