This book evaluates the strength of the rule of law in the South Caucasus, a volatile and strategically important region of the former Soviet Union. Contributors - all of whom who have lived and worked in Armenia, Azerbaijan or Georgia - tackle this question from the perspectives of both law and politics. A wide range of specific issues are addressed, including corruption in the justice system, forced migration, telecommunications and environmental protection.

Autorentext
KAREN ANDREASYAN Assistant Professor, Law Department, Yerevan State University, Armenia SARA ANJARGOLIAN Policy Advisor and Deputy City Attorney, Rocky Delgadillo's office, USA NANCY SHARP NTI ASARE Member, State Bar of New Mexico and Tenth Court of Appeals in Denver, USA ALLISON MORRILL CHATRCHYAN Post-Doctoral Fellow, Bard College, Center for Environmental Policy, USA CHARLES ROBERT DAVIDSON Lecturer in International law, Khazar University, Azerbaijan MARINA GULEDANI Lecturer in International Trade Law, Tbilisi State University, Georgia GULARA GULIYEVA PhD Student, Institute of Philosophy and Law of Azerbaijan's Academy of Sciences, Azerbaijan ERIK S. HERRON Asssitant Professor of Political Science, University of Kansas, USA IRAKLI G. MIRZASHVILI Law Student, University of Houston, USA ANNEKE R. SMIT Lecturer and Doctoral Candidate, School of Law and European Studies, University of Reading, UK CHRISTOPH H. STEFES Assistant Professor in Comparative European and Post-Soviet Studies, University of Colarado at Denver, USA AMANDA E. WOODEN Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, Northeastern Illinois University, USA CLAUDE ZULLO Regional Deputy Country Director, American Bar Association's Central European and Euroasian Law Initiative (ABA/CEELI), USA

Inhalt
Introduction; C.P.M.Waters PART 1: ROLE OF THE STATE Clash of Institutions Clientelism and Corruption versus Role of Law; C.H.Stefes 'Georgians Cannot Help Being Original'; The Evolution of Election Rules in the Republic of Georgia; E.S.Herron & I. Mirzashvili Democratization and the Rule of Law in Azerbaijan: Europe's Relevance; G.Guliyeva Rule of Law in the Secessionist States; C.P.M.Waters PART 2: LAWYERING Lawyers in the Caucasus: Climbing out of the Communist Shadow; C.Zullo Legal Education in Azerbaijan: Past, Present, and Future Challenges; C.R.Davidson & N.S.N.Asare PART 3: REGULATION The Legal Basis for Business in Georgia; M.Guledani Regulation and Reform in Telecommunications; K.Andreasyan Linking Rule of Law and Environmental Policy Reform in Armenia and Georgia; A.M.Chatrchyan & A.E.Wooden PART 4: VULNERABLE GROUPS AND THE LAW Armenia's Women in Transition; S.Anjargolian Protecting Housing and Property Rights of the Displaced in Georgia; A.R.Smit