William Hurst, Ruling Before the Law: The Politics of Legal Regimes in China and Indonesia

William Hurst's 'Ruling Before the Law' presents a comprehensive comparative study of the judicial politics in China and Indonesia from 1949 to the present. The author introduces a novel typology of legal regimes, categorizing them based on the degree of political competition and state intervention. Through detailed empirical research, Hurst analyzes three distinct legal regime types: mobilizational, rule by law, and neotraditional. The study highlights the reciprocal relationship between law and politics, showing how legal regimes both reflect and shape political realities. Notably, the author's extensive fieldwork and case studies provide a nuanced understanding of the dynamics at play, offering insights that transcend simplistic notions of law within politics or politics within law.