Lawther, Cheryl; Moffett, Luke --- "Introduction – Researching transitional justice: The highs, the lows and the expansion of the field" [2017] ELECD 769; in Lawther, Cheryl; Moffett, Luke; Jacobs, Dov (eds), "Research Handbook on Transitional Justice" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2017) 1

Book Title: Research Handbook on Transitional Justice

Editor(s): Lawther, Cheryl; Moffett, Luke; Jacobs, Dov

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781781955307

Section Title: Introduction – Researching transitional justice: The highs, the lows and the expansion of the field

Author(s): Lawther, Cheryl; Moffett, Luke

Number of pages: 8

Extract:

Introduction ­ Researching transitional justice:
The highs, the lows and the expansion of the field
Cheryl Lawther and Luke Moffett



Transitional justice is a field on an upward trajectory.1 Originally viewed by many as an
extension of the study of transition within political science,2 particularly in relation to
the transitions from conflict or authoritarianism in South America and Eastern Europe,
or the preserve of lawyers seeking to ensure legal accountability in transitional states,3
as a field of scholarly enquiry and practitioner action, transitional justice has been a site
of exponential growth. A vast academic literature, that this Research Handbook
contributes to, is driven by scholars from a diverse array of disciplines, including law,
criminology, sociology, theology, history, anthropology, philosophy and development
studies, and has lent a significant intellectual energy to the field. Equally, a dedicated
`International Centre for Transitional Justice', specialist university courses and insti-
tutes and the growth of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) focused on dealing
with past human rights abuses in societies in transition has contributed to the creation
of a self-conscious area of practice.4
What is particularly striking is the speed with which transitional justice has been
accepted as a distinct field of study and practice. Originally defined by Teitel as
`exploring the role of law in periods of radical political transformation',5 the term
transitional justice has come to summarise debates over how successor regimes should
deal with the human rights abuses of their authoritarian predecessors.6 The evolution
and expansion of ...