Legal Education and the Social Sciences: A Retrospective Look into George Priest’s Crystal Ball

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Yale Journal on Regulation

Journal Abbreviation

Yale J. on Reg.

Abstract

Early in his career, Professor George Priest floated the idea of the law-school-as-university, in which scholars and teachers would employ the social sciences to understand how the law affects human behavior. He contended that the traditional study of doctrine was both uninteresting and of little consequence. In this essay I contend that Professor Priest’s advocacy, particularly of law and economics, has contributed greatly to understanding of the law’s impact on human behavior. I also contend that his prediction of an altered and expanded curriculum proved accurate, but not in the way he contemplated. Rather, law school curricula have burgeoned with clinics and courses promoting a wide array of activist causes at the expense of traditional offerings on doctrine and legal method. A consequence is a new generation of lawyers and judges dedicated to realizing favored causes rather than respecting and maintaining the rule of law.

First Page

990

Last Page

1009

Publication Date

2025

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