Essays

May 19, 2023
Hadley Arkes on "Mere Natural Law," Role of the Judiciary, Debates within Originalism, and the Moral Foundations of the Law—Originalist Angles

May 19, 2023
Hadley Arkes on "Mere Natural Law," Role of the Judiciary, Debates within Originalism, and the Moral Foundations of the Law—Originalist Angles
Prof. Hadley Arkes sat down for an interview with Originalist Angles to discuss his new book "Mere Natural Law" and the principles of Natural Law that undergird our constitutional order.

May 9, 2023
VIDEO: Judge Janice Rogers Brown, 2023 Leadership & Law Award Remarks
Judge Janice Rogers Brown delivers stirring remarks on the future of the country and the role of the judge upon receiving the 2nd JWI Leadership & Law Award.

March 31, 2023
Why We Cannot Avoid Natural Law in Constitutional Debates
Michael Hayes (JWF '20) analyzes the Court's positions on substantive due process in the key Dobbs decision, and makes clear that try as we might, we never can truly escape from moral reasoning and the Natural Law.

March 24, 2023
My Warm Up for Judge Duncan—and What Next for Stanford?
Hadley Arkes shares his own experience with student protests at Stanford Law and asks how its administration will respond to the next incident.

March 3, 2023
James Wilson and the Nature of Law
Prof. Jonathan Gienapp explains how Wilson's integrated view of law grounds the harmony of law and philosophy that he argued for in the Constitution's ratification debates.

February 24, 2023
James Wilson and "We the People"
Prof. John Mikhail describes the unique role of James Wilson among the Founders as both moral philosopher and legal scholar who shaped our Constitution and our concept of who "We the People" are in the United States.

February 10, 2023
Is Conservative Jurisprudence Renouncing Moral Reasoning?
Prof. Arkes argues that moral judgments, rather than belonging to legislators instead of judges, are an essential - indeed inescapable - part of the work of a judge, especially in recognizing the most basic facts that bear on their judgments.

February 10, 2023
Is Conservative Jurisprudence Renouncing Moral Reasoning?
Prof. Arkes argues that moral judgments, rather than belonging to legislators instead of judges, are an essential - indeed inescapable - part of the work of a judge, especially in recognizing the most basic facts that bear on their judgments.

February 3, 2023
In Search of Original Meaning -- the Religion Clauses: Part II
In Part II, Assistant Editor Ted Hirt concludes with an evaluation of Phillip Munoz's understanding of the Constitution's religious clauses.