Judging Judges

"Judging Judges refocuses and elevates the debate over judges and the rule of law by showing how personal and professional values matter. Jason E. Whitehead demonstrates that the rule of law depends on a socially constructed attitude of legal obligation that spawns objective rules. Intensive interviews of judges reveal the value systems that uphold or undermine the attitude of legal obligation so central to the rule of law. This focus on the social practices undergirding these value systems demonstrates that the rule of law is ultimately a matter of social trust rather than textual constraints. Whitehead's unique combination of philosophical and empirical investigation is a major advance because it moves beyond the dichotomy of law or politics and shows that the rule of law is shared social enterprise involving all of society - judges, politicians, scholars, and ordinary citizens alike. Judging Judges' attention to judicial values identifies judges' true worth in a liberal democracy"--Unedited summary from book jacket.