Sumário: This paper explores how the design of judicial institutions has affected the stability in office of Supreme Court and Constitutional Tribunal justices in 17 Latin American countries between 1900 and 2009. The paper discusses the legal evolution of Latin American high courts during the twentieth century, and presents a statistical analysis of the survival of justices in office. The conclusions emphasize the impact of institutional rules and non-institutional factors on judicial independence, and the relevance of judicial stability for democracy.

Nota biográfica: Aníbal Pérez Liñán is Associate Professor of Political Science and member of the Center for Latin American Studies at the University of Pittsburgh.  His work focuses on issues of institutional design and democratization. He is the author of Presidential Impeachment and the New Political Instability in Latin America (Cambrige University Press, 2007).