The rule of law as export product

Abstract

The Rule of Law is not only a set of requirements for national legislation but also functions as export-product, requiring the governments of fragile or failed states to establish an independent judiciary, separation of powers and the like. This article contains a philosophical analysis of how the Rule of Law is conceptualized in this context, and develops some hypotheses concerning the way in which relations between donor countries and receiving countries risk achieving the opposite of what is intended.