Due Process As American Democracy

Reviews / Votes

Professor Redish's tour de force deftly blends political theory, constitutional theory, and doctrine into a thoughtful, ambitious, and provocative reconstruction of the concept of due process. Scholars interested in constitutional law, interpretative theory, civil procedure, administrative law, legal ethics, remedies, free speech, the public-private distinction, or the American constitutional order as a whole - just to name a few topics covered in this bold and engaging work - will find themselves sometimes cheering, sometimes jeering, but always thinking. This is scholarship at its best. * Professor Gary Lawson, Philip S. Beck Professor of Law, Boston University School of Law * No scholar has written more cogently about the intersection of democratic theory with American constitutional due process. In this provocative new book Professor Martin Redish challenges conventional due process accounts based on originalism, utilitarianism, and dignity values... The nub of Redish's argument is that due process accounts fail to ground it in underlying democratic theory or a proper appreciation of separation of powers doctrine. Redish revolutionizes due process thinking with a new theory based on concepts of liberal adversarial democracy and skeptical optimism. He illustrates his theory in settings such as complex multidistrict litigation, representative lawsuits, private contingent fee attorneys aligning with government attorneys, and administrative actions. * Professor Linda S. Mullenix, Morris & Rita Atlas Chair in Advocacy, University of Texas School of Law * Procedural due process (PDP) is one of the most invoked and least understood concepts in American law. In this pathbreaking book, Professor Redish views PDP as an outgrowth of "liberal adversary democracy," rooted in mistrust of those who wield power. He uses this lens to illuminate problematic doctrine in civil procedure, administrative law, and constitutional law. Only a scholar of Redish's breadth and depth could write this sweeping and important book. It is a capstone achievement by one of America's preeminent constitutional theorists. * Richard Freer, Charles Howard Candler Professor of Law, Emory University * Excellent for law school collections. * Choice *