Law Commons^™

Unenumerated Constitutional Rights And The Rule Of Law, Randy E. Barnett

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

The rule of law has long been one of the mainstays of liberal thought. John Locke cited its absence--not the absence of rights, which Locke thought existed in the state of nature--as the first reason for forming a government. Essentially, the rule of law says that the requirements of justice must take a form such that persons can know what justice requires of them before they act and can detect abuses by those charged with law enforcement. If the formal and procedural requirements of the rule of law are adhered to, those "good" persons who seek to act properly can …