Expressive Law and the Americans with Disabilities Act

Authors

Alex C. Geisinger, Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of LawFollow
Michael Ashley Stein, Harvard Law SchoolFollow

Abstract

The question of why people follow the law has long been a subject of scholarly consideration. Prevailing accounts of how law changes behavior coalesce around two major themes: legitimacy and deterrence. Advocates of legitimacy argue that law is obeyed when it is created through a legitimate process and its substance comports with community mores. Others emphasize deterrence, particularly those who subscribe to law-and-economics theories. These scholars argue that law makes certain socially undesirable behaviors more costly, and thus individuals are less likely to undertake them.

Recommended Citation

Alex C. Geisinger & Michael A. Stein, Expressive Law and the Americans with Disabilities Act, 114 Mich. L. Rev. 1061 (2016).
Available at: https://repository.law.umich.edu/mlr/vol114/iss6/11