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Federalism and Subnational Legal Mobilization: Feminist Litigation Strategies in Salta, Argentina
Author(s) -
Ruibal Alba
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
law and society review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.867
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1540-5893
pISSN - 0023-9216
DOI - 10.1111/lasr.12370
Subject(s) - federalism , mobilization , insider , political science , autonomy , state (computer science) , public administration , scholarship , argument (complex analysis) , law , sociology , politics , biochemistry , chemistry , algorithm , computer science
This article draws from a qualitative study of feminist legal strategies in the province of Salta, Argentina, to put forth an argument about the impact of federalism on subnational legal mobilization in a nonindustrialized federal democracy. It argues that the federal architecture of the state can strengthen the ability of local legal activists to pursue litigation strategies, and that it can do so in two main ways: by fostering the institutional autonomy of government agencies and insider activists working for the defense of rights at the local level, and by facilitating the provision of external legal resources and support for local legal activists in civil society. The theoretical perspective connects two research agendas that have not yet been combined to explain feminist legal strategies in federal systems: legal mobilization studies and gender and federalism scholarship, and proposes nuances to both strands of research.