The Debate Over the Role of Restatements

In the past few years, we frequently have seen the charge that the ALI’s mission is to state what the law “is,” rather than what the Institute thinks the law “ought to be,” and that we recently have strayed from this mission and should right the ship. This charge most...

Restatements and the Federal Common Law

Because of Erie,1Erie RR. Co. v. Tompkins, 304 U.S. 64, 78 (1938). the phrase “common law” probably conjures in most lawyers’ minds the idea of state common law. And, not surprisingly, the Restatements are generally identified with state common law rules.  Indeed, our...