Rule of Law 'Crucial' to Economic Success
Because the rule of law cannot be solely the province of lawyers, it was only fitting Wednesday afternoon that an economist on a panel made mostly of lawyers offered the most scientific and concrete example of the good it can bring.
Daniel Kaufmann, director of global programs and governance at the World Bank Institute, led with some humor at the outset of a panel discussion on “Perspectives on the Rule of Law,” held at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. and one of many Law Day activities around the country.
Economists, says Kaufmann, were shocked to discover a flaw in their concept of causality: Not all economic occurrences are due to economic factors. “The rule of law is crucial,” he says.
Economic data indicates that the rule of law is one of the most important reasons some developing countries have seen 300 percent increases in per capita income and lower infant mortality rates in recent years. Most important, Kaufmann explains, are protections for property rights and human rights.
“It is a means to achieve prosperity,” Kaufmann says of the rule of law.
That was just one of many definitions for the rule of law bandied about during the two-hour discussion, moderated by NBC News’ Pete Williams, who covers the U.S. Supreme Court and Justice Department. It can be a means for achieving justice; it can be used for just the opposite, such as to justify racial segregation, as the Jim Crow laws did in this country until the mid-1960s.
The rule of law seems a simple term, but it is as slippery and elusive as it is necessary. One panelist pointed out that it might best be explained by the Tinkerbell Effect: If we all believe in it, it exists.
Panelist Allan C. Hutchinson, an Englishman who teaches law at Osgoode Hall Law School at York University in Toronto, known for original thinking and provocative writing, made it simple: “The rule of law is only as good as the society of which it is a part.”
And that’s one reason for Law Day. May 1 marks the 50th anniversary of President Dwight Eisenhower’s proclamation in 1958—at the urging of then-ABA President Charles S. Rhyne—for “a day of national dedication to the principle of government under law.” This year’s theme is “The Rule of Law: Foundation for Communities of Opportunity and Equity.”
More than one panelist remarked on the lack of civics instruction and knowledge in the United States.
Dianna Huffman, who teaches journalism at the University of Maryland, says she was amazed that when she asked her students to name the three branches of government, some of them couldn’t.
Panelist Randy E. Barnett, who teaches at the Georgetown University Law Center, says one problem with the rule of law is the laws themselves. He says, for example, that a generation has grown up using radar detectors to beat the 55 mph speed limit, and otherwise law-abiding citizens use illegal cannabis to alleviate pain and sickness.
“Respect for the law suffers,” Barnett says, adding that the legislatures should “make sure the law conforms to common sense.”
Perhaps the overriding definition given the rule of law during the discussion was that it is only a means to an end. “Most of us are saying we’re concerned about justice,” says Phillippa Strum, director of United States studies at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C.
ABA President William Neukom told the audience that ABA colleagues and others in 30 states were engaging in Law Day activities.
