Urban legal autonomy and (de)globalization

The global rise of local power should be understood as an expression of the ascension of the value of local autonomy, and should be guided by a theoretical conceptualization of local governments and their legal regulation, and by a pragmatic understanding of cities' legal roles in current global developments. Local autonomy can promote important values such as democratic participation and accountability, multiculturalism and pluralism, vertical separation of powers, and economic efficiency. However, unchecked local autonomy increases race-to-the-bottom dynamics, makes inter-local cooperation more difficult, exacerbates economic and social inequalities, and might radicalize religious, cultural, political and ideological tensions. This article seeks to develop the idea of local autonomy as a legal principle, and investigates its possible meanings in the context of (de)globalization.