How Courts Changed the Law to Help Big Business
Understanding how judges invented new rules that aren't in the Constitution
What Is Legal Doctrine?
Legal doctrine is a rule that courts invented. It's not in the Constitution or in laws. Courts just decided it and other courts follow it.
Why Courts Invent Doctrine
Courts have to decide cases. When the Constitution or laws don't clearly say what to do, courts have to make a decision. That decision becomes doctrine.
The Problem
Sometimes courts invent doctrine to help big business instead of helping regular people. Once a court invents doctrine, other courts follow it. So bad doctrine can last for decades.
How It Changed
Starting in 1979, courts started inventing doctrine to help big business. They invented the 'consumer welfare standard' to make antitrust laws useless. They expanded corporate personhood. They expanded qualified immunity. Each change made big business more powerful.
What We Can Do
We can challenge bad doctrine in court. We can demand that the Supreme Court overturn bad doctrine. We can vote for politicians who will appoint judges who care about workers and consumers.
The Bottom Line
Courts invented rules that aren't in the Constitution. These rules help big business and hurt workers and consumers. We can challenge these rules and demand that courts overturn them.
Courts invented rules that aren't in the Constitution: Legal doctrine is made up by courts. It's not in the Constitution or in laws. Courts just decided it.
Courts changed the rules to help big business: Starting in 1979, courts started inventing bad doctrine. They made antitrust laws useless. They gave corporations constitutional rights. They made it impossible to hold officials accountable.
The Supreme Court's ideology changed: In the 1930s-1960s, courts protected workers and consumers. Starting in the 1980s, courts started siding with big business. This change wasn't because the Constitution changed. It was because the judges changed.
We can challenge bad doctrine: We can go to court and argue that bad doctrine should be overturned. We can vote for politicians who will appoint judges who care about workers and consumers.