Northwestern University School of Law Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons Faculty Working Papers 2010 Legal Uncertainty Anthony D'Amato Northwestern University School of Law,
[email protected] Repository Citation D'Amato, Anthony, "Legal Uncertainty" (2010). Faculty Working Papers. Paper 108. http://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/facultyworkingpapers/108 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Working Papers by an authorized administrator of Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons. Legal Uncertainty, by Anthony D'Amato*, 71 California Law Review 1-55 (1983) Abstract: Legal certainty decreases over time. Rules and principles of law become more and more uncertain in content and in application because legal systems are biased in favor of unravelling those rules and principles. In this article I attempt to show what these biases are, and why commentators who have argued that the law tends toward certainty are wrong, then describe various attempts which have been made at restoring certainty, and why these attempts have generally not worked. My conclusion is that these proposals are at best holding actions, and that the tendency toward increasing uncertainty in the law is inexorable. Tags: legal certainty, legal uncertainty, judicial discretion, Case Revision Commission [pg1]** Legal certainty decreases over time. Rules and principles of law become more and more uncertain in content and in application because legal systems are biased in favor of unravelling those rules and principles. In Part I of this Article, I attempt to show what these biases are, and why commentators who have argued that the law tends toward certainty are wrong.