The world’s legal system isn't falling apart—it’s being hijacked by dictators who use 'human rights' as a weapon.
March 25, 2026
Original Paper
From "Global Scripts" to "Street Fights" -The New Globalization of Law in a Fragmented World
SSRN · 6399318
The Takeaway
We usually assume global law is a Western project that weakens when autocrats rise. This paper shows that illiberal actors are actually embracing international legal frameworks to rewrite global norms from the inside, turning courts into 'street fights' for authority.
From the abstract
This article argues that the globalization of law is not collapsing under contemporary pressures but is instead being reconfigured through intensified contestation and shifting political alignments. While post-Cold War scholarship often portrayed legal globalization as a linear expansion of liberal legality, anchored in human rights, rule of law, and international institutions, recent developments have destabilized that narrative. Challenges to the legitimacy of courts and organizations, growing