The Foundations of the Rule of Law

Abstract

An uncontroversial definition of the rule of law eludes us. There is broad agreement about the features that should characterise the rules of a legal system if this is to conform with the rule of law - namely, generality, publicity, clarity, relative stability etc. Scholars, however, disagree on what institutional and procedural arrangements the rule of law requires, on whether it has inherent moral value and on whether or not it imposes substantive constraints on the content of law.