Politicology The Devil’s Advocates—Part 2
Feb 18, 2026
Rebecca Roiphe, Joseph Solomon Distinguished Professor of Law and former Manhattan prosecutor, explores attacks on liberal legalism and the view of law as raw power. She examines critical legal theory, shifts at elite legal institutions, the Trump administration’s legal philosophy, threats to DOJ independence, and how punitive moves against law firms chill representation.
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Law As Power, Not Neutral Process
- Critical legal studies views law as a tool of power rather than neutral rules, destabilizing trust in liberal democracy.
- That collapse of trust makes neutral processes seem illegitimate and invites radical alternatives.
Academics' Reaction To October 7th
- Rebecca Roiphe predicted academic reactions to major violent events and saw celebration as flowing from critical theory logic.
- She recounts colleagues celebrating October 7th as resistance, illustrating that logic in practice.
Rejecting Neutrality Creates A Void
- Critical legal theorists reject liberalism's neutral institutions as disguises for power imbalances.
- Their remedy—'explode the binaries'—is utopian and offers no concrete roadmap for governance.