Editor's Corner: Law as Illumination, Not Literalism

6 Pages Posted: 11 Oct 2015

See all articles by Robert W. Emerson

Robert W. Emerson

University of Florida - Warrington College of Business Administration

Date Written: October 9, 2015

Abstract

Long ago, my oldest child, Paul, then all of about seven years old and holding one of his favorite superhero action figures, reflected for a moment and then earnestly declared, “Dad, Wolverine would make a really good lawyer.” Taking the bait, I responded, “Why do you say that?” In confidence, and with confidence, Paul gladly responded, “Because he’s got a really bad attitude.”

What causes a child to draw that conclusion? Maybe it was Paul’s upbringing. He had an abundance of lawyers in his extended family, and he doubtless had already concluded they used big words and liked to argue. Even without childhood precociousness or lawyer acquaintances, though, suppositions about law and lawyers are almost universal. These beliefs seem to fill a basic human need to simplify an abstract subject, the legal system, as well as the people working in that system. Regardless of origin, the notion of a lawyer-centered structure helps to make a complex system more understandable: more theater than socioeconomics, more labels than analysis.

Keywords: Business Law

JEL Classification: K00

Suggested Citation

Emerson, Robert W., Editor's Corner: Law as Illumination, Not Literalism (October 9, 2015). American Business Law Journal, Vol. 52, No. 2, p. v-x, Summer 2015, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2671953

Robert W. Emerson (Contact Author)

University of Florida - Warrington College of Business Administration ( email )

Gainesville, FL 32611
United States

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