The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement: The Battle for Control of the Law (Princeton Studies in American Politics: Historical, International, and Comparative Perspectives)

Starting in the 1970s, conservatives learned that electoral victory did not easily convert into a reversal of important liberal accomplishments, especially in the law. As a result, conservatives' mobilizing efforts increasingly turned to law schools, professional networks, public interest groups, and the judiciary--areas traditionally controlled by liberals. Drawing from internal documents, as well as interviews with key conservative figures, "The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement" examines this sometimes fitful, and still only partially successful, conservative challenge to liberal domination of the law and American legal institutions. Unlike accounts that depict the conservatives as fiendishly skilled, "The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement" reveals the formidable challenges that conservatives faced in competing with legal liberalism. Steven Teles explores how conservative mobilization was shaped by the legal profession, the legacy of the liberal movement, and the difficulties in matching strategic opportunities with effective organizational responses. He explains how foundations and groups promoting conservative ideas built a network designed to dislodge legal liberalism from American elite institutions. And he portrays the reality, not of a grand strategy masterfully pursued, but of individuals and political entrepreneurs learning from trial and error. Using previously unavailable materials from the Olin Foundation, Federalist Society, Center for Individual Rights, Institute for Justice, and Law and Economics Center, "The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement" provides an unprecedented look at the inner life of the conservative movement. Lawyers, historians, sociologists, political scientists, and activists seeking to learn from the conservative experience in the law will find it compelling reading. Starting in the 1970s, conservatives learned that electoral victory did not easily convert into a reversal of important liberal accomplishments, especially in the law. As a result, conservatives' mobilizing efforts increasingly turned to law schools, professional networks, public interest groups, and the judiciary - areas traditionally controlled by liberals. Drawing from internal documents, as well as interviews with key conservative figures, "The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement" examines this sometimes fitful, and still only partially successful, conservative challenge to liberal domination of the law and American legal institutions. Unlike accounts that depict the conservatives as fiendishly skilled, "The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement" reveals the formidable challenges that conservatives faced in competing with legal liberalism. Steven Teles explores how conservative mobilization was shaped by the legal profession, the legacy of the liberal movement, and the difficulties in matching strategic opportunities with effective organizational responses. He explains how foundations and groups promoting conservative ideas built a network designed to dislodge legal liberalism from American elite institutions. And he portrays the reality, not of a grand strategy masterfully pursued, but of individuals and political entrepreneurs learning from trial and error. Using previously unavailable materials from the Olin Foundation, Federalist Society, Center for Individual Rights, Institute for Justice, and Law and Economics Center, "The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement" provides an unprecedented look at the inner life of the conservative movement. Lawyers, historians, sociologists, political scientists, and activists seeking to learn from the conservative experience in the law will find it compelling reading Contents......Page 8 Acknowledgments......Page 10 Introduction......Page 16 1. Political Competition, Legal Change, and the New American State......Page 21 2. The Rise of the Liberal Legal Network......Page 37 3. Conservative Public Interest Law I: Mistakes Made......Page 73 4. Law and Economics I: Out of the Wilderness......Page 105 5. The Federalist Society: Counter-Networking......Page 150 6. Law and Economics II: Institutionalization......Page 196 7. Conservative Public Interest Law II: Lessons Learned......Page 235 Conclusion......Page 280 Appendix: Interviews......Page 298 Notes......Page 302 B......Page 346 C......Page 347 F......Page 348 H......Page 349 L......Page 350 N......Page 351 R......Page 352 S......Page 353 Z......Page 354 Contents 8 Acknowledgments 10 Introduction 16 1. Political Competition, Legal Change, and the New American State 21 2. The Rise of the Liberal Legal Network 37 3. Conservative Public Interest Law I: Mistakes Made 73 4. Law and Economics I: Out of the Wilderness 105 5. The Federalist Society: Counter-Networking 150 6. Law and Economics II: Institutionalization 196 7. Conservative Public Interest Law II: Lessons Learned 235 Conclusion 280 Appendix: Interviews 298 Notes 302 Index 346 A 346 B 346 C 347 D 348 E 348 F 348 G 349 H 349 I 350 J 350 K 350 L 350 M 351 N 351 O 352 P 352 R 352 S 353 T 354 U 354 V 354 W 354 Y 354 Z 354 Political competition, legal change, and the new American state The rise of the liberal legal network The emergence of the conservative public interest law movement Law and economics : out of the wilderness Counter-networking : the origins and evolution of the federalist society Law and economics : institutionalization Lessons learned : the emergence of the center for individual rights And the institute for justice. Political competition, legal change, and the new American state The rise of the liberal legal network Conservative public interest law I ; mistakes made Law and economics I : out of the wilderness The federalist society : counter-networking Counter-networking Law and economics II : institutionalization Conservative public interest law II : lessons learned.