In Tying the Autocrat's Hands, Yuhua Wang attempts to answer a key question for the study of authoritarian regimes: why do some authoritarian rulers enact legal reforms that will limit their own freedom of action? What benefits do they seek? Using China as his case study, Wang develops a "demand-side" theory of legal reform. Wang argues that Chinese officials, seeking to attract and maintain outside investment, build up the courts as a means to assure foreign businesses- particularly those from outside the so-called "China circle," comprised of Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macau- that their rights will be protected, even against politically-connected Chinese firms.
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