Courts and Federalism: Judicial Doctrine in the United States, Australia, and Canada, by Gerald Baier

Abstract

This is an impressive book. In a brief 162 pages of text the author presents a systematic analysis of judicial doctrines of federalism in three countries, the U.S., Australia, and Canada. If for nothing else federalism scholars should read this book for concise and insightful accounts of recent federalism jurisprudence in these countries. The writing is crisp, the discussion succinct, and the analysis of various currents and shifts over time convincing. In this regard the book is superb. However, the author also sets out another ambitious theoretical agenda. At the outset, he attacks the attitudinal model in American public law scholarship, and proposes instead to show that “doctrine matters” by anchoring his discussion in postpositivist analysis of the new institutionalism. Thus, the book promises to make a contribution both to the comparative analysis of federalism jurisprudence, as well as to the theory of judicial decision making. In short, it promises a lot.