Her ladyship Chief Justice: the rise of female leaders in the judiciary in Africa

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Periodical article

Title:	Her ladyship Chief Justice: the rise of female leaders in the judiciary in Africa
Authors:	Dawuni, Josephine Kang, Alice
Year:	2015
Periodical:	Africa Today (ISSN 1527-1978)
Volume:	62
Issue:	2
Pages:	45-69
Language:	English
Geographic terms:	Africa Rwanda Ghana Nigeria Sierra Leone Benin Niger
Subjects:	constitutional courts judges women
External link:	https://muse.jhu.edu/article/604105
Abstract:	In recent years, women have been selected as leaders of African judiciaries. This article identifies where and when women have become chief justices and presidents of constitutional courts from 1990 to 2014. The authors profile women from three civil-law and three common-law countries and find that the women selected meet or exceed the requirements for holding the highest position in the judiciary. They then explore why some African countries, but not others, have had female judicial leaders. They initially find that the selection method may be less important than the type of legal system, the commitment of gatekeepers, the end of major armed conflict, and regional diffusion in explaining why some countries have seen women rise to leadership positions in the judiciary. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. [Journal abstract]