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Analysis of why politicians are driven to create an independent judicial institution with the authority to overrule their decisions. It focuses on a country with no tradition of independent judicial review - Russia. History does not support an independent judiciary here; yet a potentially powerful constitutional court has existed for 20 years.

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Foreword The Russian Constitutional Court in Comparative Perspective Establishing Judicial Review in Russia The Politics of Judicial Review in Russia, 1989-2010 USSR Constitutional Oversight Committee, 1989-1991 The First Russian Constitutional Court, 1991-1993 The Second Russian Constitutional Court, 1994-2010 Three Attempts to Establish Judicial Review in Russia Appendix Notes Bibliography Index

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´A thoughtful and deeply informed analysis of the establishment and operation of Russia´s Constitutional Court. Read and learn about this important development.´

- George P. Shultz, 60th US Secretary of State, Distinguished Fellow, The Hoover Institution, Stanford University, USA

´Carla Thorson has been an astute observer of the Russian Constitutional Court from the time of its foundation. Her book provides an impressive and thorough analysis of the changing role of this institution from its origins in the last years of the Soviet Union to the present day. Even though the Court´s political independence has been seriously curbed, Thorson makes a convincing case for its continuing potential significance.´

- Archie Brown, Emeritus Professor of Politics, Oxford University, UK

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CARLA THORSONVice President of Public Programs, World Affairs Council of Northern California, USA. She is a specialist in Russian Politics and has held previous positions at UCLA, RAND, RFE/RL Inc., and IREX.

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