The Expressive Powers of Law: Theories and Limits

by McAdams

When asked why people obey the law, legal scholars usually give two answers. Law deters illicit activities by specifying sanctions, and it possesses legitimate authority in the eyes of society. Richard McAdams shifts the prism on this familiar question to offer another compelling explanation of how the law creates through its expressive power to coordinate our behavior and inform our beliefs.

“McAdams’s account is useful, powerful, and―a rarity in legal theory―concrete…McAdams’s treatment reveals important insights into how rational agents reason and interact both with one another and with the law. The Expressive Powers of Law is a valuable contribution to our understanding of these interactions.”
― Harvard Law Review

“McAdams’s analysis widening the perspective of our understanding of why people comply with the law should be welcomed by those interested either in the nature of law, the function of law, or both…McAdams shows how law sometimes works by a power of suggestion. His varied examples are fascinating for their capacity both to demonstrate and to show the limits of law’s expressive power.”
―Patrick McKinley Brennan, Review of Metaphysics

Genres: Law

336 pages, Paperback

First published February 9, 2015

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating new book that looks at why people obey the law. Economists have often credited deterrence (saying that legal sanctions influence behavior) and sociologists often point to legitimacy (the idea that people obey the law because they see it as a legitimate authority). But McAdams, a professor at the University of Chicago Law School who has written about this topic for more than a decade, says that's not the whole story. Law works expressively by allowing people to coordinate and by signaling new information and beliefs.

For instance: People tend to comply with traffic signs not because they fear sanctions, but because they want to coordinate with other drivers -- they don't want to slam head-on into another car. Laws can also signal the changing tide of public opinion. A new smoking ban might work because it reveals both a rising disapproval of cigarette smoking, and well as a growing belief among lawmakers that smoking is harmful.

[UChicagoLaw]

My colleague’s masterful exploration of the law’s capacity to establish order and influence behavior without coercive force. It investigates the law’s ability to coordinate and convey information with examples ranging from automobile traffic to anti-smoking laws and even to the Constitution. Insightful and creative, the book deserves wide readership among law students especially. —Thomas J. Miles

[Brandon Shultz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good analysis about the expressive powers of law. I was really impressed with the continuous use of some easy to understand everyday examples that were able to succinctly