International institutions, from the WTO to the UN Security Council, face mounting legitimacy challenges. Reforms promising greater procedural fairness are frequently proposed as solutions, but do they actually work? After Reform provides the first systematic empirical answer to this question. Drawing on an original dataset of more than 9,500 legitimacy statements made by member states across three major institutions, Vegard H. Tørstad evaluates how procedural-fairness reforms shape states' perceptions of institutional legitimacy over time. Through in-depth case studies of participation reform in the UNFCCC climate negotiations, impartiality reform in GATT/WTO dispute settlement, and transparency reform in the UN Security Council, this book shows that reform effects are real but uneven – and identifies the conditions under which reforms are most likely to succeed. With multilateralism under unprecedented strain, After Reform offers acutely timely new theoretical insights and concrete policy lessons for how to design international cooperation.

‘Tørstad delivers a timely, theoretically rich, and empirically rigorous contribution to contemporary debates on international institutions. He demonstrates that reforming international decision-making processes in ways that enhance fairness strengthens the legitimacy of global governance. After Reform is an excellent book that documents the legitimizing effects of participation, transparency and impartiality.'

Theresa Squatrito - Associate Professor in International Organisations, LSE

‘At a time when multilateralism is widely contested, legitimacy is hard currency for international organizations. In this meticulously researched and elegantly presented book, Vegard Tørstad shows how IOs can attract higher legitimacy from their member states through reforms that bring about greater procedural fairness. A must read for scholars and practitioners of global governance.'

Jonas Tallberg - Professor of Political Science, Stockholm University

‘Can international institutions improve perceptions of their legitimacy through procedural reforms? Through rigorous comparative analysis of climate, trade, and security institutions, Tørstad shows that procedural-fairness reforms can powerfully strengthen states' perceptions of legitimacy-yet, absent great-power buy-in and manageable costs, they may also undermine it. This book offers important insights in both the power and limitations of procedural fairness reforms.'

Erik Voeten - Peter F. Krogh Professor of Geopolitics and Justice in World Affairs, Georgetown University