法律英語完整版本

〔美〕戴維·S·克拉克，（土）圖魯爾·安賽編著.美國法律概論第二版.中信出版社,2003.7.Chapter1TheAmericanLegalSystemandLegalCultureDavid&Clark*I．TheOriginalVisionA．LibertyB．DistrustofGovernmentC．ToleranceD．OptimismII．UnityoutofDiversityIII．PragmatisminLawIV．IndividualismVDisquietingFactors：DiversityasDivisivenessSelectedBibliographyTheideaofArnericaasitrelatestolawhasalwaysbeenmorepowerfulthantherealityoflawinAmerica．TheDeclarationofIndependence(1776)，theUnitedStatesConstitutionfl787)，anditsf沖sttenamendments，theBillofRights(17911．earlystatedtheidealinlawandgovernment．Thevoicefromthesedoe—umentswassoonheardinEuropeandLatinAmerica，laterinAsiaandAfrica，andmorerecentlyineastemEuropeandtheformerSovietUnion．ButwhatabouttheUnitedStatesitself?Conceivedinhopeanddedicatedtoopportunity,ithastoallastoundingdegreeoveritsshorthistoryaccommodateddifferentraces，ethnicgroups，andreligions．However,unlikethefewmodemnationswhosewealthandhomogeneityhaveallowedtheirlegalsystemstomergetheidealandthereal．theUnitedStatesisalandofvastcontrasts．+MaynardandBerthaWilsonProfessorofLaw,WillametteUniversityCollegeofLaw；VicePresident，AmericanSocietyofComparativeLaw．DavidS．ClarkandTuggulAnsay(eds．)IntroductiontotheLawoftheUnitedStates，l-11◎2002KluwerLawInternational。TheHague，TheNetherlands：2

IntroductiontotheLawoftheUnitedStates

I．THE0RIGINALVISION

Fourelementsofthefoundingfathers’visionfortheUnitedStatesofAmerica

areespeciallysignificantfortheevolutionofitslegalsystemandlegalculture：

liberty,distrustofgovernment，tolerance，andoptimism．

TheDeclarationofIndependencestates

Weholdthesetruthstobeself-evident，thatallmenarecreatedequal，that

theyareendowedbytheirCreatorwithcertainunalienableRights，that

amongtheseareLife，LibertyandthepursuitofHappiness．Thatto

securetheserights，GovernmentsareinstitutedamongMen，deriving

theirjustpowersfromtheconsentofthegoverned．

AfundamentaIaimoftheAmericanRevolutionwastoassert．a(chǎn)tIeastforwhite

males，anaturalandinalienablerightto“LibertyandthepursuitofHappiness．”

Thehistoryofthe19thand20thcenturiesiSastoryaboutthegradualextension

ofthisandotherrightstoblackMaves，women，nativeAmericans，andevenresi．

‘dentforeigncitizens．Thisprocessofgreaterinclusionwasassistedbytheout-

comeoftheCivilWar(1861．1865)，whichabolishedslaveryandestablishedthe

comeoftheCivilWar(1861．1865)，whichabolishedslaveryandestablishedthe

equalityprincipleintheConstitutionthroughthe14thAmendmentr1868)．

Thenaturalrightoflibertywastothepursuitofhappiness；itwasnotaguar-

anteeofhappiness．Anindividualhadthelibertytocontracttoimprovehiswel—

fare．the1ibertytomarrywhomever,thelibertytotravelwherever,thelibertyto

worshipGodinhisownway,thelibertytospeakhismind,thelibertytodonoth—

ing．ThephysicalenvironmentofNorthAmericafacilitatedtheexerciseofthis

right．Itwasaspaciouscontinent．1essdenselyinhabitedthanEurope．Itinvited

mobility,independence．a(chǎn)ndenterprise．Libertyrealizedbreedsoptimism．

Americansfeltthattheyhadapersonalstakeinthefuture；theywereinclinedto

experiment．togamble，towaste．Whateverpromisedtoincreasewealthwascon-

sideredgood．Americansresentedgovernmentifittriedtointerferewithprivate

enterprise．Thenegativesideofliberty,however,ledtovastenvironmentaldespo-

liationandtragichumanexploitation．

Nevertheless．thesymboloflibertywasandisapositivebeaconto

Americansandtomanythroughouttheworld．Theword“l(fā)iberty’’appearsasa

reminderonthefrontofallAmericancoins．IttakesphysicalforminNewYork

HarborastheStatueofLiberty．AgiftfromtheFrenchtocommemoratethecen-

tennialofAmericanindependence，itwasplacedtofacearrivingvoyagersfrom

Europe．a(chǎn)bouttodisembarkonthelonelinessofastrangeland,asthemonument

tofreedomandopportunity0fferedbVlifeintheUnitedStates．ChapterlTheAmericanLegal@stemandLegalCulture3B．DistrustofGovernmentThatwheneveranyFormofGovernmentbecomesdestructiveoftheseends，itistheRightofthePeopletoalterortoabolishit，andtoinstitutenewGovernment，layingitsfoundationonsuchprinciplesandOrganizingitspowersinsuchform，astothemshallseemmostlikelytoeffecttheirSafetyandHappiness．Onemechanismearlyfavoredtomoderatethetensionbetweentheneedforgov．ernmentandthepotentialforitstyrannywastheruleoflaw．TheFiRhAmendment(1791)guaranteesthatnopersonshall“bedeprivedoflife．1iberty,orproperty,withoutdueprocessoflaw．”TheUS．ConstitutionitselfiSanintri．catedesigntosecureagovernmentoflawsandnotofmen．ThedetailsoftheConstitutionmakeitclearthattheframersdistrustedgov．ernment．Governmentactions．intheframers’readingofhistory,wereaslikelytobringhumanmiseryastopromotehumanhappiness．Itwasbettertodesignaninefficientgovernmentalmachinetounitethel3states．Thetrickwastoincreasethepowerofnationalgovernment．a(chǎn)fterthefailureoftheArticlesofConfederation(1777)，buttoavoidcreatingacentralizedauthoritySOeffectivethatitthreatenedareturntotyranny．First．theConstitutiononlycreatesthenationalgovernment．whichislimitedtocertainenumeratedpowers．Thisfeder．a(chǎn)lstructureofgovernmentisconfirmedbytheTenthAmendmentf1791)：“ThepowersnotdelegatedtotheUnitedStatesbytheConstitution．norprohibitedbyittotheStates，arereservedtotheStatesrespectively,ortothepeople．’’Therefore．governmentwasdividedbetweenanationalgovernmentofrestrictedpowersand13originalstates．eachwithitsownconstitutionanddividedpowers．Second,nationalgovernmentisseparatedintothreebranches．eachwithaprimaryfunction：legislation，administration，andadjudication．NOonepersoncanparticipateinmorethanonebranch，unliketheparliamentarysystemwheretheprimeministerisatonceheadoftheexecutiveandofthemajoritypartyinthelegislature．ThirdtheConstitutionsetsoutanelaborateframeworkofchecksandbal—ancesamongandwithinthethreebranchesofgovernment．WithintheCongress．forinstance．thereexisttwochambers：onetosatisfysmallstatesthatwantedequalrepresentation(theSenate)，andtheothertoaccommodatethepopulousstateswithmembershipbasedonpopulation(theHouseofRepresentatives)．FederaldistrictcourtsarecheckedintheirpowerbytheprocessofappealtotheSupremeCourt．Ingeneral，nonewgovernmentalactionCallproceedwithouttheassentofatleasttwobranches．AbillonlybecomeslawifboththeSenateandtheHouseofReDresentativespassitbymajorityvoteandthepresidentdoesnotvetoit．TheCongresscancontrOlorterminateexecutiveprogramsbydenialoffunds．Thepresidentascommanderinchiefmayonlyinitiatewaruponitsdec只有當參議院三分之二以上提出建議并同意，總統(tǒng)才可以制定條約?？偨y(tǒng)任命最高法院的大法官，但是他們必須經(jīng)過參議院大部分人確認。其他監(jiān)督在憲法中也能體現(xiàn)出來，比如通過司法審查來制約立法或行政行為的權力。第四點，憲法要求固定選舉，意在促進問責政府主要政治領導人：代表選舉每兩年一次，參議員選舉每六年一次，總統(tǒng)和副總統(tǒng)選舉每四年一次。第五，憲法是一份書面文件，不像英國是不成文，不成文憲法很難正式修改。最后，那些相信上面提到的措施不足以防止暴政的人，成功地增加《1791年人權法案》，以此作為國民政府的外部約束力。最高法院后來執(zhí)行其反對政府的所有分支的規(guī)定，使人權法案不僅僅是一個勸告文件。美國人在共和國的第一個世紀對法律表現(xiàn)的很模棱兩可。展現(xiàn)了西方傳統(tǒng)的形象，伴隨著探索，現(xiàn)在也有許多矛盾的地方。一方面，憲法是國家的最高法律。國旗代表著國家統(tǒng)一。美國沒有貴族階層，沒有永恒的遺產(chǎn)，沒有國家教堂。由于聯(lián)邦司法部門脫穎而出，成為像

憲法一樣的最終裁決，對于過去的200多年的大部分時間，司法部門特別是最高法院一直是美國最受尊敬的法律機構。這無疑是當今世界上最強大的司法機關。另一方面，美國人是出了名的無法無天。他們對于權威和規(guī)則的態(tài)度總體上是不尊重的，因為他們覺得這些是對個人權利的威脅。人們還認識到制定者視野中的憲法并沒有總是得到落實?？偨y(tǒng)發(fā)動一場戰(zhàn)爭也沒有獲得國會的授權。國會議員通過控制選舉權力的貨幣杠桿，并最終實現(xiàn)長期留任。最高法院做出了不受廣大公民歡迎的決定。但它不僅僅只是一種認識，即書本上的法律與實踐中的法不同。規(guī)則體現(xiàn)了傳統(tǒng)和過去。這里是新世界，實踐才最重要。這種態(tài)度產(chǎn)生的任何問題以后都可以被整理出。也許這就是美國有90萬律師和法官的原因，這一數(shù)據(jù)占世界的三分之一。形成新共和國的13個殖民地的歐洲定居者來自處于不同環(huán)境的各個地方。但是又一個共同因素塑造了他們的狀態(tài)：他們是持不同政見者和新教徒。他們不能和他們國家的政治和宗教權威很好相處，或者他們的社會和經(jīng)濟狀況不能被充分接受，以至于他們經(jīng)過漫長的航海穿過大西洋。他們以出行的方式提出了異議。第三，憲法精心設計出一個框架，意在監(jiān)督和平衡政府的三個分支。比如說，在議會內，存在兩個內庭，一個是參議院，目的是使希望有平等比例的小州滿意，另一個是眾議院，滿足了人口眾多的州的要求。聯(lián)邦地區(qū)法院在案件被上訴到最高法院的過程中，權力受到監(jiān)察?？傮w上來說，只有至少經(jīng)過政府兩個部門的同意，政府的行為才能夠進行下去。一項法案只有經(jīng)過眾議院和參議院大部分通過，并且總統(tǒng)沒有投反對票，才可以最終成為法律。議會可以通過拒絕提供資金來控制或者終止執(zhí)行程序。TheCongresscancontrolorterminateexecutiveprogramsbydenialoffunds．4IntroductiontotheLawoftheUnitedStateslarationbyCongress．Thepresidentmaymakeatreaty,butonlyiftwothirdsoftheSenateprovidesitsadviceandconsent．ThepresidentappointsjusticestotheSupremeCourt，buttheymustbeconfirmedbyamajorityoftheSenate．AndSOon．OtherchecksweresoonimpliedfromtheConstitution．suchasthepowertostoplegislationorexecutiveactsbyjudicialreview．1Fourth，theConstitutioncallsforfixedelectionstopromoteaccountabilitytothepeopleofthegovernment，Sprincipalpoliticalleaders：everytwoyearsforrepresentatives，everysixyearsforsenators，andeveryfouryearsforthepresi—dentandvicepresident．Fifth．theConstitutionisawrittendocument—notunwrittenasinEngland——anditisdifficulttoformallyamend．Finally,thosewhobelievedthattheabovecitedbarrierstotyrannywereinad-equatesucceededinaddingtheBillofRightsinl79lasasetofexternalrestraints0nthenationalgovernment．TheSupremeCpurrlatermadetheBillofRightssomethingmorethanamerehortatorydocument，enforcingitsprovisionsagainstallbranchesofgovernment．Americansinthefirstcenturyoftherepublicwereambivalentaboutlaw．ThereiStheimageofthewildWest．a(chǎn)ssociatedwiththetaskoftamingafrontier,butmanytodayremainambivalent．Ontheonehand,theConstitutioniSthesupremelaw．Alongwiththeflag．itstandsfornafionalunity．Americahasnoroyalfamily,notimelessheritage，nonationalchurch．SincethefederaljudiciaryemergedastheultimatearbiterofwhattheConstitutionmeans，formuchofthepast200yearsthejudiciaryandespeciallytheSupremeCourthasbeenAmerica'smostrespectedlegalinstitution．ItiSsurelythecontemporaryworld'smostpowerfuljudiciary．Ontheotherhand,Americansarenotoriouslylawless；theirattitudetowardauthorityandrulesisingeneraldisrespectfulsincethesealeoftenseenasathreattoliberty．Peoplealsorealizethattheframers’visionfortheConstitutionhasnotalwaysbeenimplemented．111epresidentcommandsawarwithoutobtainingadeC-larationfromCongress．Congressmenremaininofficeforlongperiodsofpoliticalmalaisebycontrollingthemonetaryleversofelectoralpower．TheSupremeCourtmakesawidelvunpopulardecision．Butitismolethanonlyarecognitionthatthelawonthebooksisdifferentfromthelawinaction．Rulesrepresenttradition，thepast．ThisistheNewW|orld：actioniswhatmattersmost．Anyproblemsthisatti-tudegeneratesCanbesortedoutlater．PerhapsthatiSwhythereare900，000lawyersandiudges～aboutonethirdoftheworld'stotal—intheUmtedStatestoday．C.toleranceTheEuropeansettlersofthel3coloniesthatformedthenewrepubliccarnefrom

manylandsunderdifferentcircumstances．Butonecommonelementcharacter-

izedtheirsituation：thevweredissentersandnonconformists．Theyeithercould

notgetalongwiththepoliticalorreligiousauthoritiesintheirhomelandortheir

socialoreconomicconditionwassufficientlyunacceptablethattheypackedtheir

bagsandmadethelongvoyageacrosstheAtlantic．Theydissentedwiththeirfeet．

ChapterJTheAmericanLegalSystemandLegalCulture5TheUnitedStatesitselfwasbornofdissent，asthecomplaintsagainstKingGeorgeIIIintheDeclarationofIndependencemakeclear．Moreover,thenation'。sfatherssawdissentasapositiveforce—oratleastasanattitudethatcouldnotbeeliminatedfromtheAmericanpsyche．Therightofreligiousconscienceandthefreedomtoexpressanopinionwereenshrinedinthec面stoneamendmenttotheConstitution，theFirstAmendmentf1791)：Congressshallmakenolawrespectinganestablishmentofreligion，orprohibitingthefreeexercisethereof；orabridgingthefreedomofspeech，orofthepress；ortherightofthepeoplepeaceablytoassemble，andtopetitiontheGovernmentforaredressofgrievances．Therightofdissentinapoliticalcommunityrequirestoleranceofdissenters．TheFirstAmendmentmandatestolerance，atleastbythegovernment：therewouldbenonationalreligion，nogovernmentalideology,nostatenewspaper(certainlynotwiththepompousname“Truth”、．D．OptimismAmericanswererestlessinawaythatlinkeddissenttooptimism．Pioneerswhopulledupstakesandrodetothefrontierweredissentingfromthepastwhileatthesametimeexpressingtheirconfidenceinanunknownfuture．ThiSwastheNewWbridandtherewasacontinenttosettle．Libertywastheirright．Governmentwouldnotstandintheway．Europeanslivedinthepast，boundbytheremnantsoffeudalismandnurturedbyculturalnationalism．ThosewhoemigratedtoAmericaescapedthispastandmarveledatthebountyofnaturalresources．Therighttopursuehappinesslednottoiustthephilosophicalideaofprogress，buttotheexperienceofprogress：theconversionofwildernessintofarms，thegrowthofvillagesintocities，andtheemergenceofAmericaasaworldpower．TheAmericancharacterwasinfusedwithoptimism，stemmingfromthesenseofspaceandthepossibilitiesofhumanaction．Peoplecoulddesignlegalinstitutionstoimprovesociety：therewasnoneedtosimplyemulatethepast．AmericawasblessedbyGod．似nnuitcoeptisaccordingtothegreatsealoftheUnitedStates，reproducedoneachonedollarbill：horusordoseclorum．)Formany,optimismturnedtowardafeelingofmoralsuperiority,whichinturnfedanotionofmanifestdestiny．Somecontemporarylawyersbelieve，tolllustrate，thatothernationswouldimproveiftheyadoptedAmeriCalllegalinstitutionsassocl-atedwithconstitutionalism，judicialreview,orhumanrights．II．UNITYOUTOFDIVERSITYEpluribusunum，themottooftheUnitedStatesadoptedbyCongressin1782，fo—undonthereverseofallitscoins，sumsupthecentralchallengefacingthe6IntroductiontotheLawoftheUnitedStatesAmericanlegalsystem．BythetimeoftheRevolution，settlershadarrivedfrommanypartsofEurope．TherewereabouthalfamillionblackslaveslivinginthesouthelTlcolonies．NativeAmericans，ofcourse，alreadyinhabitedthecontinent．Eachgrouphadltsownculture，religion，language，andinstitutions．Inspiteofthisrichdiversity,amongthosecoloniesthatrevoltedfromGreatBritain，Englishbecamethedominantlanguage．。一AlongwithEnglishcamethecommonlawtradition．especiallyasitrelatedtoprivatelaw．ButAmericansselectedamongEnglishlegalinstitutionsanddecidedwhichtoretainassuitabletotheirnewpoliticalandsocialconditions．Theyrejected,forinstance，theparliament，thedivisionbetweenbarristersandsolicitors，andthedoctrineofprimogeniture．Theymaintained,ontheotherside，thejury,thedivisionbetweenlawandequity，andtheEuglishstyleoflegalargu—mentandthought．Consequently,thecommonlawtraditionprovidedameasureofunitythroughoutthenewnation．Asadditionalstateswereadmittedtotheunion，each(exceptforLouisiana)acceptedthecommonlaw．Federalism，asadoptedintheConstitution，wasanothermechanismtobringadegreeofunityoutofdiversity．SeeChap．4．pts．IV,VI．TheUS．Congresshaslegislativecompetenceonlyinenumeratedfields．buttheycoverthecrucialcon—cernsofnationalgovernment：immigrationandcitizenship，taxesandexcises，currency,bankruptcy,patentandcopyright，weightsandmeasures，foreignaffairs，armedforces．maritimelaw,andtheregulationofforeignandinterstatecommerce．Theremainingfieldsoflawwerelefttothestates．whichintheirdiversitycouldregulatemostofprivatelawastheywished．Thelegalstructure．however’ismorecomplicatedthanthisdescriptionSUE．Rests．Eachstatehasafullsetof1egalinstitutions：agovernorandexecutiveagenciesandstaff,alegislature，andacompletehierarchyofordinarycoul'tswiththepowertoadjudicatestatelawquestionsandeventohearmostfederalcases(thelattersubiecttoappealtotheUS．SupremeCourt)．Stateshavefurtherindulgedinpoliticaldecentralizationbycreatingsmallergovernmentalunits．suchascounties，cities，anddistricts—forwater,fireprotection，schools，andotherspecialconcerns——somewiththeirowntaxingandregulatorypowerandevenwiththeirownpoliceforce．SeeChap．15，pt．I．A．Localaccountabilityisthepopulistslogan．Todaythereareanastounding87，500governmentalunitsintheUnitedStates．whichemploy20millionpersons．Stateandlocalgovernmentemploys86percentoftheseworkers．Thestates，then，withinthisfederalstruc—turearelike50hugesociallaboratorieswithplenaryauthorityovertheirownadministrativeandtaxlaw,aswellasoverproperty,contracts，torts，families，inheritance．a(chǎn)ndmostcommercialmatters．Statesandcitiescreateandenforcethousandsofmundanerulesthataffectthedailylifeofaveragecitizensandbusi·nesses．Statesareincompetitionwitheachother．Astate'sIegalpolicies，alongwithitsclimate，economicsituation，andotherfactors，attractorrepelcitizens，whoarefreetostayortoleave．Theflowofimmigrationinthelatel9thcenturyuptothepresenthasfurtherincreasedthedegreeofdiversity,sincemanyofthenewersettlershavecomefromcentralandsouthernEurope，LatinAmerica，andAsia．Oftenthesenewimmigrantsareattractedtotheneighborhoods，cities，orstateswherepeopleoftheirsameethnicheritagereside．Chapter】TheAmericanLegalSystemandLegalCulture_}JneAmericanlegalsysternhasremainedresponsivetothesocialneedfornationalunltyingelementsinthelaw．Forinstance，thecommerceclauseinarti-cleI．section8oftheConstitutionhasbeenamajorinstrumentforextendingfed．eralpower,andtherebyrestrictingstatepower,overmattersthathaveonlyanindirecteffectoninterstatecommerce，suchasracialdiscriminationinrestau．rantsandhotels．TheSupremeCourtearlyonhadinterpretedthenecessaryandproperclauseinsection8toprovideabroaddoctrineofnationalimpliedpowersfortheCongress．2Thefullfaithandcreditclause3similarlyservesaunifyingfunctionbyrequiringeachstatetorecognizeandinappropriatecasestoenforce“thepublicActs，Records，andiudicialProceedingsofeveryotherState．”Congressbystatutehasfurtherrequiredthatfederalcourtsrespectstateacts，records，andjudicialproceedingstotheextentthattheyarevalidinstatecourts．4TheendoftheAmericanCivilW打m1865broughtrenewedeffortstoaddressthequestionofunity．Thesuccessioneffortofthesouthernstateswasdefeated；slaverywasabolished：blacksbecamecitizens．The13th?！?th，and15thAmendmentstotheConstitutiongavespecialimportancetotheequalityprinciple．EachamendmentgrantedadditionalpowertoCongresstoenforceitsprovisions．Inaddition．theSupremeCourthasreadsectionlofthe14thAmendment(dueprocessandequalprotectionclauses)inawaytodramaticallyshiftpowerawayfromstatestobediverseinamannerthatwouldviolatecertainprovisionsoftheBillofRightsorwouldinfringeaperson'sequalityrights．SeeChap．4，pts．Ⅸ，X．OtherelementspromoteunificationinAmericanlaw．LawschoolsintheUnitedStatesarenormallypartofuniversities，whicharefinancedbystategov—ernmentaspublicentitiesorarecreatedbystatelawasprivateorganizations．Nevertheless．1awschoolshaveanationalfocussincemostareaccreditedbynationalgroups．TheprofessorsteachfromnationalcasebooksthatemphasizeacommonAmericanlaw,andmostprestigiousschoolsattractstudentsfromthroughoutthecountry．SeeChap．2，pt．II．ConcernaboutthedisorderofAmericancommonIawlongagoledludges，lawyers，andprotessorstojomtogetherinanefforttopromotelegalunification．TheseeffortsresultedintheNationalConferenceofCommissionersonUniformStateLaws(1892)．whichpublishesunifoITnlawsthatithopesstatelegislatureswilladopt，andtheAmericanLawInstitute(1923)，whichpublishesRestatementssummarizingthelegalrulesfoundinthemajorfieldsofcommonlaw．TheseRestatementsarefrequentlyusedbylawyersinadvancingalegalargumentbeforeacourt．SeeChap．3，pt．VA，B．Finally,unityhasbeenaidedbytheenormousgrowthinthesizeofthefed-eralgovernment．ParticularlysincePresidentFranklinRoosevelt'sNewDealpro-grambeganin1933，peoplehavedemandedanationalresponsetovarioussocialandeconomicproblemsthatstateandlocalgovernmentsseemunabletosolve．Federallawandlegalagenciestodayaremuchmoreimportantthantheywereatthebeginningofthe20thcentury：fortaxation，socialsecurity,businessandlaborregulation，civilrights，andenvironmentalprotection．8IntroductiontOtheLawoftheUnitedStatesIII．PRAGMATISMINLAWAgroupoflawyersandjudgestryingtocometoaconsensusaboutthedominantAmericanphilosophyoflawcouldprobablynotagreeonanythingmorespecif-iCthanthenotionofCommonSense．ThemostoftenquotedaphorismfromAmerica'sgreatestiurist—OliverWendellHolmes，Jr．(1841．1935)一sumsupthisattitude：“The．1ifeofthelawhasnotbeenlogic：ithasbeenexperience．”5GrantGilmore，inhisStorrsLecturesonJurisprudeneeatYaleLawSchool，reaf-firmedthisview：TlheprincipallessontobedrawnfromourstudyiSthatthepartofwis．domistoke印ourtheoriesopen—ended,ourassumptionstentative，Ourreactionsflexible．Wemustact，wemustdecide，wemustgothiswayorthat．Liketheblindmendealingwiththeelephant．wemusterecthyoothesesonthebasisofinadequateevidence．Thatdoesnoharm—atalleventsitiSthehumanconditionfromwhichwewillnotescape—solongaswedonotdeludeourselvesintothinkingthatwehavefinallyseenourelephantwhole．Americansingeneraltendtohavelittleinterestinphilosophyormetaphysicalabstractions．FromaEuropeanperspective，AmenCanSvulgarizedphilOSOphyinthesamewaythattheydebasedlanguage，fOOd，ormanners．VromanAmericanperspective，alternatively’thlsisacceptableSOlongasItservessomeusetulpur一130se．1nanunbndleddemocracy,everypersonISentltledtoanopmlon．Intellectualsare0ftendistrusted；professors，characterizedasabsentminded,areIntellectualsareoftendistrusted；professors，characterizedasabsentminded,are

theobjectsofhumor．

Pragmatisminthelawissupportedbyseveralstructuralfeaturesofthe

Americalllegalsystem．First，theiudge，notthescholar,istheprotagonistinthe

developmentoflegaldoctrine．mostvisiblyatthelevelofthelJ．S．Supreme

Court．Holmes，himselfajusticeontheCourt，said：“Thepropheciesofwhatthe

courtswilldoinfact，andnothingmorepretentious，arewhatImeanbythelaw．”7

Inthecivillawworld,bycontrast，scholarshaveplayedthepredominantrole

sincetheRomanempire．Second,lawschoolsusethecasemethodofinstruction，

whichde—emphasizestheoryanddoctrinalcoherenceandfocusesonthefactsof

individualdisputes．Anewlawyergraduatingfromlawschoolknowslotsof

twigsandtrees。butdoesnothaveaclearviewoftheforest．Europeanlegaledu—

cation．ontheotherside，teachesthegrammarofthelaw,promotesthroughlec-

tureapanoramicviewofdoctrine，andbelievesinarightanswertoalegal

problem．Finally,pragmatism．withitselementsofrelativismandinstrumental

reasoning．iSbuttressedbytheoriginalvisiondiscussedinpartI：libertyandits

connectiontoequalitarianindividualism，distrustofgovernment(orreallyanya

priorisystemofthought)，tolerance，andoptimism．ChapterJTheAmericanLegalSystemandLegalCulture9IV．INDIVIDUALISMAlthoughepluribusunum——unityoutofdiversity——supportsatraditionbasedonClVlCrepublicanvirtue，duty,andthecommongood,aconflictingAmeriCalltra．dition，basedonnaturalrights，fostersindividualism．LawrenceFriedman．char．a(chǎn)cterizingmodemlegalculture，foundthatAmericanshavecreateda“republicofchoice，”whichhasreplacedallearlierbalancebetweenlibertyandrestraint．fightandduty．8Libertytodaymeansautonomousindividualism；itincreasinglyhasbeenseparatedfrompreviousnotionsofthecommongood．ThisisclearlyvisibleintheSupremeCourt'sdecisionsofthepastthreedecadeswithregardtoprivacyandfreespeechrights．SeeChap．4，pts．IX．C．3。XI．Thelegalorderispremisedoneachindividual'scapacitytofreelychooseamongvalueswithoutconstraintbyothersorbythestate．Thisrequiresthatthemanyconceptionsofthegoodallbetreatedasequallylegitimate．Individualismrecognizesnohierar．chyofvaluesoutsidepersonalchoice．Itisskepticalofhistoricallyorculturallydeducedvalues—orofthosecommunallyselected—sincethesemightimposeaconceptionofthegoodonpersonswhodidnotchooseitforthemselves．Eventhel960scivilrightsrevolution—extendingrightstoblacksandotherethnicminorities，women，andotherdisadvantagedgroups—grewoutofindi-vidualism．Atthecoreofeachliberationmovementisthedesireforthemajorityinsocietytotreateachpersonasanindividualhuman，notasamemberofarace，gender,orgroup．SeeChap．4．pt．X．C．1．Individualismisalsobehindthesuccessinthe1970sofdivorceondemand．Thefamily’scommunalinterestisworthlessthanapersons'sindividualinterest．Marriagelosestheprestigeofpermanence；itisnolongerseenassupportedbyreligionorevenasfurtheringanypublicinter-est．Theendofmarriageissimplyamatterofindividualchoice．perhapsevenbetweentwopersonsofthesamesex．SeeChap．1l，pts．III，X．Atomisticindividualism．withitslackofcommitmenttothecommunity,isassociatedwiththeincreasingprivatizationofAmencanli／e．CarsandgunsarebothappropriatemetaphorsforanAmerican'slibertyandautonomy,andthelawprotectshisrighttoboth．Theautomobileoffersinexpensive，individualizedtransportationtoahighlymobilepeople．Americansdonotwalkplacesorsup—portcommunityenhancingmasstransit．Witllacar,onecandrivequicklypastthehomeless．pastthedecayandviolenceoftheinnercity,towardtheepitomeofisolation：suburbia．Onceathome—increasinglyaone·personhousehold～agunbecomestheinstrumenttoprotectone'srights：rightsinprivacyandproperty．Privatecitizenstodaypossess200millionfirearms，onethirdofwhicharehand-gUnS．Thereisnosafetyorreposeincommunity．10IntroductiontotheLawoftheUnitedStatesVDISQUIETINGFACTORS：DIVERSITYASDIVISIVENESSMixingthefactorsofraceandpovertyinAmericahaveproducedasocialdevel—opmentinconsistentwithrepublicangovernment：asubstantialunderclass，cutofrfrommainstreamAmericabydiscrimination，underemployment，homeless．ness．1ackofeducationadequateforparticipationinthecommunity,andsincethel990sanincreasingseparationbyimprisonment．Whilemanylegislaturesandthefederalcourtswere