Interpreting Codes

Authors

Bruce W. Frier, University of Michigan Law SchoolFollow

Abstract

Large systematically codified bodies of law, such as the European codes or the UCC, gradually effect, or at least encourage, a different kind of legal culture, in which, as such codes are integrated within a national legal heritage, general clauses and principles become more salient within an expanded interpretive community. Because of the open texture of their rules, codes foster an altered legal posture; ancient judicial vigilance against the intrusive legislation may give way to a new ethos of cooperation in the development of law. To be sure, it remains uncertain whether the resulting law will be, in fact, "better," or even more uniform.

Recommended Citation

Bruce W. Frier, Interpreting Codes, 89 Mich. L. Rev. 2201 (1991).
Available at: https://repository.law.umich.edu/mlr/vol89/iss8/5