Stephen Sachs on Finding Law

In this episode, Stephen E. Sachs, Professor of Law at Duke University School of Law, discusses his article "Finding Law," which was just published in the California Law Review. Sachs begins by explaining the conceptual difference between "making" and "finding" law, and why his argument that it is possible for judges to find law is controversial. He describes the legal realist argument that judges only make law, and how it found early expression in the Erie v. Tompkins case. He observes that we "find" norms all of the time, and argues that judges can and do "find" law in just the same way. And he explains how iconic examples to the contrary, including Erie, actually require law-finding as well. Sachs is on Twitter at @StephenESachs.This episode was hosted by Brian L. Frye, Associate Professor of Law at the University of Kentucky College of Law. Frye is on Twitter at @brianlfrye. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.