Legal Certainty: A European Alternative to American Legal Indeterminacy?

68 Pages Posted: 25 Jun 2008 Last revised: 23 May 2015

See all articles by James R. Maxeiner

James R. Maxeiner

University of Baltimore - School of Law

Date Written: March 21, 2007

Abstract

Americans are resigned to a high level of legal indeterminacy. This Article shows that Europeans do not accept legal indeterminacy and instead have made legal certainty a general principle of their law. This Article uses the example of the German legal system to show how German legal methods strive to realize this general European principle. It suggests that these methods are opportunities for Americans to develop their own system to reduce legal indeterminacy and to increase legal certainty.

Keywords: legal certainty, legal indeterminacy, legal methods, law reform, civil procedure, comparative law, legislation, case law, statutory interpretation, federalism

Suggested Citation

Maxeiner, James R., Legal Certainty: A European Alternative to American Legal Indeterminacy? (March 21, 2007). Tulane Journal of International & Comparative Law, Vol. 15, No. 2, p. 541, 2007, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1150522

James R. Maxeiner (Contact Author)

University of Baltimore - School of Law ( email )

1420 N. Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21218
United States
410-837-4628 (Phone)

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