Judge Jed Rakoff and Law’s Penumbra

Abstract

Judge Jed Rakoff has famously written opinions that contain very strong dicta describing his views. In the contexts in which he is writing, law ‘on the books' has not sufficed and probably could not suffice: society has been harmed, and the actors harming it cannot be sufficiently constrained. Judge Rakoff's dicta may help expand law's penumbra to encompass what ‘law on the books' cannot.