Law as the art of justice: on Vermeule's 'Common Good Constitutionalism'

Journal article

This essay focuses on some of Adrian Vermeule’s key prescriptive claims at the level of general theory in Common Good Constitutionalism. In particular, I examine (a) his strongly antipositivist understanding of law and its implications for both the legitimacy of law and equity (epikeia) in legal adjudication; (b) his interpretation of the common good, and (c) his elaboration of a non-liberal common good-based account of individual rights. A general theme that emerges is that Vermeule fails to engage with the most sophisticated versions of the positions he is concerned to reject, a strategy that has an unhelpfully polarizing effect on debate, and which also—paradoxically —underestimates the strength of the classic legal tradition / natural law tradition he is concerned to uphold.

Authors: Tasioulas, J

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Journal: American Journal of Jurisprudence
• Publication date: 2024-08-08
• Acceptance date: 2023-05-01
• DOI: 10.1093/ajj/auae007
• EISSN: 2049-6494
• ISSN: 0065-8995
• Language: English
• Keywords: common good; general jurisprudence; equity; vermeule