Reflections on social change and the emergence of specialized courts The case of Argentina in the 20th Century

PALACIO, JUAN MANUEL

Frankfurt

Workshop; Law and diversity: European and Latin American experiences from a legal historical perspective; 2021

Max Planck Institute for Legal History and Legal Theory

The purpose of this paper is to reflect upon the questions raised in the roundtable from the experience of Argentina. First, I will take a comparative stand to review the Argentine historical process of judicial differentiation over time vis a vis the German case analyzed by Collin. Secondly, I will analyze the process of conformation of two special jurisdictions in mid-twentieth century Argentina –namely, labor courts and the “Arbitration Chambers of Rural Tenancies” (Cámaras Arbitrales de Arrendamientos)–, as case studies to address the multi-causal origins of judicial differentiation. Thirdly I will draw some conclusions on the broader issue of special courts and social differentiation, as formulated by Collin.