Fred Carstensen wrote: > > For this discussion, what I would point to is the > framework that this > established was one in which individuals (firms) > could formulate > reasonably stable expectations about the future > consequences of > current (economic) decisions--and thus engaged in > micro-planned > activities that at the macro level appeared > spontaneous. I think this is what John Commons was saying. The common law is not an epiphenomenon; it has important constitutive features. The doctrine of _stare decisis_ is a key element, as it changed the source of the common law from custom to the opinions of judges. At the same time, reliance on precedent does not prevent judges from looking forward to ensure that decisions are advancing some the relevant collective end. Michael Nuwer