How should courts interpret the law? Strictly according to the text? By lawmakers’ original intent? By the needs of today’s society? Philosophical ideals? In this talk, Tara Smith, professor of philosophy and BB&T Chair for the Study of Objectivism at the University of Texas at Austin, argues that the best laws in the world are useless if misunderstood.
On January 12 and 13, Tara Smith, professor of philosophy at the University of Texas at Austin, will discuss her new book, Judicial Review in an Objective Legal System, which seeks to identify the pillars of proper review.
Tara Smith, professor of philosophy at the University of Texas at Austin, will discuss her new book, Judicial Review in an Objective Legal System, which seeks to chart a distinctive course for genuinely objective constitutional review.
Are you currently enrolled in a JD program? Have you completed the first year of law school? Are you eager to advance Ayn Rand’s philosophy of Objectivism in the culture? If you fit the description, then we can offer you the opportunity to take part in ARI’s summer legal fellowship program.
In November, ARI’s director of legal studies, Steve Simpson, will be on ARI's “Road to a Free Society” tour. Across the country he will be giving a talk titled “Cronyism, Corruption and Government Power.” Is there any truth to the claims that our government is corrupt and cronyism rampant? In his talk, Mr. Simpson will argue that there is something to the issues of “cronyism,” but not in the way that most people think.
“In Europe, charters of liberty have been granted by power. America has set the example . . . of charters of power granted by liberty.”
James Madison wrote these words in 1792, five years after the Constitution began its journey toward ratification by the states. Today marks the 227th anniversary of that beginning — the signing of the Constitution by the 39 delegates to the Philadelphia convention. Madison’s statement is one of my favorites because it conveys, more than any other quote I can think of, the proper relationship between individuals and government, which is a key part of the profound moral significance of the Constitution and the government it created.
Freedom of speech is under siege. Not by the “amplified” voices of billionaires and corporations, but by the sundry spokesmen for “the public” demanding that government should have the power to silence individuals via campaign finance laws.
ARI announces its new summer legal fellowship, an internship program that allows law students to work alongside ARI’s policy intellectuals. Legal fellows will research and write on law and policy issues, working with Steve Simpson, director of legal studies, and other ARI intellectuals.
Michael Kinsley has a very sensible take on the Supreme Court’s McCutcheon decision that is particularly notable because he refuses to join the chorus of unfocused, hysterical complaints about money in politics emanating from many of his colleagues on the left.
