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Confronting Uncertainty In Child Abuse Adjudication: A Contextual Analysis Of Theories Of The Judical Role In A Changing Society, Lawrence W. Cohen

Antioch Law Journal

Throughout history scholars have attempted to defend myriad conceptions of the judicial role. For instance, Corwin believed that law, embodied in nature, was to be discovered by judges.1 Cardozo also envisioned an active judiciary, responsible for keeping law consistent with the mores of the day.2 Wigmore, on the other hand, felt that personalizing justice through judicial discretion is the "antithesis of the Anglo-Saxon conception of justice."' 3 Rather, justice, if attainable at all, must be achieved through strict rule application. 4 Whereas 19th-century scholarship focused on formal rules, recent authorities have turned to contemplating how legal decisions are made and …

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The Formulaic Constitution, Robert F. Nagel

Publications

The Supreme Court's constitutional jurisprudence of late has been filled with formulae - tests that must be met, hurdles that must be overcome. This multi-pronged analytical technique is, according to Professor Nagel, distancing the Justices from both their audience, the American public, and their text, the Constitution. In an effort to retain the authority of that text, the Court is instead displacing it; in an effort to persuade that audience, the Court is instead excluding it. Furthermore, the Court's attempt to constrain judges has actually created an irresponsible judicial freedom, while its attempt to locate a middle ground between the …

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