Libertarian

Coping with Coronavirus

Richard Epstein analyzes the economic, political, and public health consequences of the coronavirus.single payer

The Supreme Court and the Separation of Powers

Richard Epstein analyzes a new case that may limit the power of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — and the administrative state. He also previews his new book, The Dubious Morality of Modern Administrative Law.

Coronavirus, Pandemics, and the Law

Richard Epstein describes the legal dimensions of coping with Coronavirus: whether cities can resist hosting quarantined patients, the scope of federal power to restrict movement, and concerns about excessive reliance on Chinese supply chains for prescription medications.

Roger Stone, Bill Barr, and the DOJ Controversy

Was Donald Trump wrong to sound off on the Roger Stone trial? Is Attorney General William Barr hopelessly compromised? What are the limits of presidential intervention in the Justice Department? Richard Epstein answers these questions and more in the newest installment of The Libertarian.

State of the Unions

Richard Epstein explains why a decline in union membership is a positive development for the American economy, why public-sector unions are intrinsically corrosive, and why conservative populists’ enthusiasm for reviving organized labor are misguided.

School Choice and the Supreme Court

Richard Epstein analyzes a case out of Montana that may have significant implications for parents’ ability to send their children to private schools.

AB 5 and the End of Freelancers?

Richard Epstein examines a new California law that is imperiling the livelihoods of many of the Golden State’s independent contractors and considers how challenges to the legislation may fare in the courts.

Iran, War Powers, and the Constitution

Richard Epstein examines the legal controversies around the Trump Administration’s attack on Iranian leadership: Was it an ‘assassination’? How much can Congress constrain the president’s ability to act in such situations? Is this a situation where precedent trumps constitutional text? Plus, a look at debates over the legality of military conscription.

Best and Worst of the 2010s

Richard Epstein analyzes the most promising — and disturbing — intellectual trends of the 2010s.

California Burning

Richard Epstein considers all the ways California policymakers are compounding the damage from the state’s wildfires — from a misplaced emphasis on global warming to new regulations that will damage the market for home insurance.