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26

mar

Research Seminar in Sociology of Law with Mekonnen Ayano

26 mars 2025 13:15 till 15:00 | Seminarium

The Sociology of Law Department arranges research seminars inviting local and international social scientists to present state-of-the-art research within various areas of law and society.

 

 

Lawyering on the Eve of War

The Role of Law and Lawyers in Ethiopia’s Civil War

What role do lawyers play when a nation stands at the precipice of war? This article examines how Ethiopia’s legal profession navigated escalating political instability and legal uncertainty in the years leading up to the country’s devastating civil war (2018–2022). It explores how private attorneys, judges, prosecutors, state legal advisors, and law academics engaged with shifting power dynamics, ethical dilemmas, and political tensions, revealing their complex positioning as both actors and intermediaries in the unfolding crisis. While some resisted state overreach and sought to uphold legal norms, others adapted to the fragile legal order to survive, illustrating both the resilience and vulnerability of lawyering under authoritarianism and conflict. Beyond the Ethiopian case, this study contributes to broader debates on the unintended consequences of legalism in polarized postcolonial settings. While the rule of law is often seen as a stabilizing force that fosters democratic governance and conflict resolution, in deeply divided societies, excessive legalistic framing can exacerbate tensions rather than mitigate them. By transforming a politically charged dispute between national and regional factions into a legal battle over delayed elections during the COVID-19 pandemic, Ethiopia’s legal community—whether intentionally or not—helped entrench opposing sides in a judicial contest that ultimately escalated the conflict. This article argues that in contexts marked by entrenched historical and sociological grievances, an overreliance on judicial mechanisms may deepen political divides rather than resolve them, shedding light on the paradoxical role of lawyers in moments of national crisis.
 

Om evenemanget

Plats:

Room M331, 3rd floor, Allhelgona Kyrkogata 18 (House M), Lund and online.

Kontakt:

ole [dot] hammerslev [at] soclaw [dot] lu [dot] se