The Policy Impact of Court Decisions in Latin America and South Asia

Courts that Matter addresses whether courts can influence policy change.As indicated by Botero's title, she answers affirmatively under certain conditions.The book presents a well-developed theory and evidence from eight court cases in Argentina and Colombia as well as additional cases from India.Unlike other studies that only analyze court impact by whether courts' decisions are enacted and enforced, she goes further by defining impact in novel and important ways.Her insights into assessing impact and broadening its scope to include how court decisions influence the mechanisms for lasting policy change are a refreshing addition to the narrower literature on compliance with judicial decisions.The book adds much to the broader fields of law and society and comparative judicial studies.As noted by Botero, most scholars limit their analysis of courts' impact to whether a decision was complied with or if there was a policy change in the direction posited by a court.As Botero points out, measuring impact in this way misses the manner in which court decisions can provide needed information to policymakers, interest groups, and citizens, as well as spur debate and innovation fostered through interactions among these entities.She describes a variety of mechanisms adopted after court rulings to increase their impact that not only solve problems related to the case before the court but also solve future problems in unique ways.This essay provides a summary of Botero's key points related to defining the impact of court decisions and factors that determine their impact and applying the theory to specific cases.I discuss alternative explanations and future areas of research.The book provides rich and important details related to the theory and cases which readers should read closely to discover the intricacies of Botero's area of inquiry.