Response to The Alchemists book

This response will be based on David Landau’s expertise in the area of constitution-building and democracy-building, and on constitutional courts in particular. Prof. Landau has already read the book in full and provided a blurb on the book’s Cambridge Press webpages stating: “Comparative constitutionalists, political scientists, and policymakers have recently shown great faith in the work of courts in new democracies. Anchored by a rich case study of Brazil and drawing on a wide range of comparative evidence, The Alchemists is not only an important caution pushing back against this trend, but also provides a thoughtful map of the ways in which domestic and international courts might work towards a more achievable role conception. Scholars of courts and democratization processes will benefit immensely from grappling with Tom Gerald Daly’s arguments.”