El método de los casos en la pedagogía jurídica de los EEUU: una valoración subjetiva

Abstract

Since its introduction at Harvard Law School in the late 19th century, the case method has been the dominant teaching technique associated with American legal education. This article analyzes and contextualizes this pedagogical institution to provide a critical and current account of the method. First, the article situates the case law method as an organic part of a legal system built on judicial review, stare decisis, and legal uncertainty. Second, the article provides a technical analysis of how the case law method is intended to give law students a structured framework for absorbing, interpreting, and creating legal doctrine. Finally, the article situates the case law method in the context of a crisis in the popular legitimacy of legal education that may impact the future of this distinctive form of legal pedagogy.