creators_name: Van Loon, Francis
creators_name: Langerwerf, Etienne
type: article
datestamp: 2010-08-11 08:08:29
lastmod: 2015-06-22 12:52:56
metadata_visibility: show
title: Socioeconomic Development and the Evolution of Litigation Rates of Civil Courts in Belgium 1835-1980
ispublished: pub
subjects: 2_4_5_1
subjects: 5_2
subjects: 5_2_1
full_text_status: none
keywords: répression du crime suppression of crime bestrijding van criminaliteit statistique statistiek statistics criminalité criminality criminaliteit justice civile civil justice civiel justitie
abstract: This article tests the usefulness of some aspects of functional the- ory in explaining the relationship between socioeconomic development and litigation trends in Belgium for 1835-1980. Some of the six hypotheses derived from functional theory are supported by the data; others are clearly contradicted. The analysis indicates that litigation is obviously not an automatic response to conflict caused by socioeconomic change.
Socioeconomic development is only one factor causing litigation, and its explanatory power is limited. Research progress can only be made by studying various kinds of conflict and types of actors, all trying to reach their specific goals in a given social context.
date: 1990
date_type: published
publication: Law & Society Review. Longitudinal Studies of Trial Courts
volume: 24
number: 2
pagerange: 283-298
refereed: TRUE
citation:   Van Loon, Francis and Langerwerf, Etienne  (1990) Socioeconomic Development and the Evolution of Litigation Rates of Civil Courts in Belgium 1835-1980.  Law & Society Review. Longitudinal Studies of Trial Courts, 24  (2).   pp. 283-298.