| dc.description.abstract | In functioning states, despite a lack of authoritative power, judiciaries are respected and
their rulings are adhered to by their respective citizens. This is known as judicial legitimacy.
Popular support of the court exists even when decisions go against public opinion because people
believe that the court is an unbiased regulator of society and the rule of law. In order to be
effective, it is imperative for states’ citizens to trust in their judicial institutions despite their lack
of enforcement capabilities. However, this is not always the case. During the United States Civil
Rights Movement in the early 1960s, the Supreme Court case, Brown v. Board of Education,
declared the racial segregation in schools unconstitutional. Several southern states ignored this
decision, however, and it took other measures, such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, outside the
Supreme Court’s jurisdiction, to enforce the ruling.
This study attempts to find out why the public views the judicial system within states as
legitimate and apply it across Qatar and Benin contexts. | en |
