The Rule of Law and Human Dignity: Reexamining Fuller’s Canons

Lon Fuller offered an analysis of the rule of law in the form of eight ‘canons’ of lawmaking. He argued (1) that these canons constitute a ‘procedural natural law’, as distinct from traditional ‘substantive’ natural law; but also (2) that lawmaking conforming to the canons will enhance human dignity—a ‘substantive’ result. This paper argues the following points: first, that Fuller mischaracterized his eight canons, which are substantive rather than procedural; second, that there is an important sense in which they enhance human dignity; third, that they fail to enhance human dignity to the fullest extent because they understand it in an overly libertarian fashion; and fourth, that Fuller’s overall approach to jurisprudence, in which the standpoint of practicing lawyers (not judges, legislators, or citizens) predominates, offers important insights into achieving congruence between the law ‘in books’ and law’s enforcement. However, to succeed such an account must emphasize the lawyer’s counseling role and access to legal services, which Fuller neglects

The Canon Wars

Canons are taking their turn down the academic runway in ways that no one would have foretold just a decade ago. Affection for canons of construction has taken center stage in recent Supreme Court cases and in constitutional theory. Harvard Dean John Manning and originalists Will Baude and Stephen Sachs have all suggested that principles of “ordinary interpretation” including canons should inform constitutional interpretation. Given this newfound enthusiasm for canons, and their convergence in both constitutional and statutory law, it is not surprising that we now have two competing book-length treatments of the canons—one by Justice Scalia and Bryan Garner, Reading Law, and the other by Yale Law Professor William N. Eskridge, Interpreting Law. Both volumes purport to provide ways to use canons to read statutes and the Constitution. In this Review of Interpreting Law, we argue that this contemporary convergence on canons raises some significant interpretive questions about judicial power and the very idea of a canon

The Ethical Dilemma of Campaigning for Judicial Office: A Proposed Solution

Candidates for judicial office looked to the Canons of Judicial Ethics for the appropriate behavior expected of a candidate during a judicial campaign. Canons 30 and 32 require candidates to remain free from an appearance of influence by those who have contributed to the campaign. The difficulty in complying with the need to raise money and to remain free from the appearance of influence led to the adoption of the Code of Judicial Conduct in 1972. Canon 7B(2) bars candidates from solicitation and acceptance of campaign contributions. The Note examines the ambiguities surrounding Canon 7B(2), and conducts a survey of judges for their reaction to Canon 7B(2). Lastly, the Note proposes a resolution that would adequately blend the candidate\u27s need to fund his campaign and the requirement that he maintain the appearance of impartiality

Comforting sentences from the warming room at Inchcolm abbey

A fragmentary inscription from the fifteenth century is reconstructed and its source identified, offering an insight into the use of one proverbial source of morally and spiritually encouraging sentences, and opening another little window on to the books available to the canons of Inchcolm

The canonization of German-language digital literature

In his paper, "The Canonization of German-language Digital Literature," Florian Hartling discusses "Net Literature," a relatively young phenomenon, that has its roots in experimental visual and concrete poetry and hypertext. With the use of new media technology, this new genre of literature has acquired much interest and is now considered to be one of the most important influences in contemporary art. Not only does Net Literature connect sound, video, and animation with interactivity and allows new forms of artistic expression, it also impacts significantly on the traditional functions of the literary system. Hartling suggests that, in relation to Net Literature, the notion of the "death of the author" gives birth to the "writing reader." Hartling presents the results of his study where he applies the concept of "canon" to German-language Net Literature and where he attempts to find out whether, in this new form of literature, a "canon" has already been formed. Based on Karl Erik Rosengren's framework of "mention technique," a sample of Germanlanguage reviews of Net Literature was analyzed. The study intends to test the applicability of Rosengren's method to the analysis of Net Literature, that is, whether it is valid to use a method that was originally developed for the empirical study of the traditional literary canon for the study of an emergent Net Literature

Compassed about with so great a cloud: the witnesses of Scottish episcopal acta before ca 1250

This article is the result of examining the witnesses to some 600 episcopal acta. Despite the unequal incidence of survival from one diocese to another and the difficulty of identifying those men who had no surname, it is possible to draw some conclusions from this type of evidence. Some-thing can be said about the bishops' clerks and chaplains, other members of their households and their relatives. There is evidence of considerable continuity of personnel from one episcopate to the next. Promotion, including movement to another diocese, can be traced, as can the arrival, growth in numbers and careers of magistri. Surnames allow a consider-ation of the origins of witnesses. Some light is thrown on the growth of cathedral chapters, the introduction of bishops' officials, the role of the Céli Dé, and on clerical dynasties, illegitimacy and pluralism. The Scottish Church is seen to be integrated into the wider Western Church