Latin American pension reforms: policymaking and the influence of courts in four differing institutional environments

Abstract

This paper compares the politics surrounding pension reforms across four Latin American countries, focusing on how institutional differences, particularly in the court system, may influence policy outcomes. But it does so while keeping the policy issue - pension reform - constant, thereby focusing on how similar interest groups acted to pursue their opposition to reform in different ways in different countries, limiting variance across policies. By analyzing the effects of courts on pension reform, I highlight the importance of studying heretofore neglected veto points outside the legislative branch that may play a role in the negotiations over reform in Latin America.