Going to Court against the Regime: Citizen-State Disputes in Kazakhstan

• In Event: Land, Crime, and Constitutions: Politicization of Law in Kazakhstan

Abstract

What explains widespread use of civil courts for citizen-state disputes in Kazakhstan? Drawing on 14 months of interviews and ethnographic fieldwork, original survey data, and compiled court records in land-related disputes, I argue that for citizens, there are three primary motivations for going to court: 1) combination of need and limited options, 2) belief that the higher-level courts are more independent from local authorities, and 3) beneficial use of informal strategies through personal connections or bribery within the formal court context.

Author

• Margaret Hanson, Ohio State U