At the constitutional level where we work, ninety percent of any decision is emotional. The rational part of us supplies the reasons for supporting our predilections.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Legal decisions are often driven by emotion first, with rationality used to justify those initial feelings.
- In plain terms
- Most judicial choices are emotional, with logic added later to explain them.
- What can you take from it?
- Recognize emotion plays a big role in legal reasoning.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Are your own decisions mostly emotional?
- How can judges mitigate bias?
Another view
This view might undervalue the role of trained legal analysis.
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