''The rule of law'' as a concept in constitutional discourse

The Rule of Law is a historic ideal, and appeals to the Rule of Law remain rhetorically powerful. Yet the precise meaning of the Rule of Law is perhaps less clear than ever before. Many invocations are entirely conclusory, and some appear mutually inconsistent. To clarify the values than are invoked by diverse and sometimes conflicting appeals to the Rule of Law, Professor Fallon develops four ideal types which reflect the unstated assumptions that underlie familiar Rule-of-Law-based arguments. But the ideal types which tend to identify the satisfaction of particular criteria as either necessary or sufficient for the Rule of Law, are also incomplete. More than is usually appreciated, the Rule of Law needs to be understood as a concept of multiple, complexly interwoven strands. In the final section of the Article, Fallon discusses the relative priority of various strands of the Rule-of-Law ideal in diverse institutional settings.