Michigan Law Review Volume 97 Issue 8 1999 The Myth of Choice of Law: Rethinking Conflicts Kermit Roosevelt III Yale Law School Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.law.umich.edu/mlr Part of the Conflict of Laws Commons, Constitutional Law Commons, Courts Commons, Jurisdiction Commons, Law and Philosophy Commons, State and Local Government Law Commons, and the Supreme Court of the United States Commons Recommended Citation Kermit Roosevelt III, The Myth of Choice of Law: Rethinking Conflicts, 97 MICH. L. REV. 2448 (2019). Available at: https://repository.law.umich.edu/mlr/vol97/iss8/3 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Michigan Law Review at University of Michigan Law School Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Michigan Law Review by an authorized editor of University of Michigan Law School Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. THE MYTH OF CHOICE OF LAW: RETHINKING CONFLICTS Kermit Roosevelt III* TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION. • • . • • . • • • . • • • . • • . • • . • . • • • . • . • • 2449 II. CONFLICTS THEORY.. • . • . • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 2454 A. Ve sted Rights: Joseph Beale . .. .. .. .. .. 2455 B. Legal Realism: Wa lter Wh eeler Cook .......... 2458 C. Interest Analysis: Brainerd Currie . .. .. .. .. 2461 D. Current Th eory . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 2466 E. Methods and Objectives: Wh at Interest Analysis ls, Wh at a Conflicts Th eory Should Be.. .. .. 2467 III. RETHINKING THE THEORY: FROM CHOICE TO CONFLICT • . • • . • • . • • . • . • • . • . • . • . • • • • • • • • • • 2471 A. Rights and Th eir Critics .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 2471 1. Th e Fa ilure of Ve sted Rights I Te rritorialism . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 2472 2. Salvaging the Concept of Rights ............ 2474 B. Governmental Interests and Th eir Critics ......