When Institutions Fail: The Case of Underage Marriage in India

30 Pages Posted: 14 Nov 2012 Last revised: 25 Apr 2017

See all articles by Michele Goodwin

Michele Goodwin

Georgetown University Law Center; University of California, Irvine School of Law

Date Written: November 12, 2012

Abstract

When do we know that the rule of law has failed or been corrupted? Who can we point to as corrupting legal order or the rule of law when most of the parties appear to be one-shotters? One shot players lack the ability to quickly master and more importantly conquer sophisticated legal labyrinths made less an enigma to repeat players-the legal elites. In India, the lines that divide the elite from the less sophisticated, or the one-shotters from the repeat players are as thick as the social customs that once divided its nation into castes. This Essay takes up the case of child marriage in India to demonstrate why the “haves” come out ahead in India’s marriage markets.

Keywords: marriage, rule of law, family, rape, human rights, adolescent, caste, poverty, partnership

JEL Classification: H11, H31, H53, H54, I12, I18, I30, I31, I32, I38, I39, J12, J13, J15, J16, J18, J54, K12, P46

Suggested Citation

Goodwin, Michele, When Institutions Fail: The Case of Underage Marriage in India (November 12, 2012). Minnesota Legal Studies Research Paper No. 12-60, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2174452 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2174452

Michele Goodwin (Contact Author)

Georgetown University Law Center ( email )

University of California, Irvine School of Law ( email )

401 E. Peltason Dr.
Ste. 1000
Irvine, CA 92697-1000
United States

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