“Precedent” is one of the key mechanisms for restraining autocratic legalism, as demonstrated by the Trump campaign’s tactics following the 2020 election.

Bernadette Meyler
Bernadette Meyler is the Carl and Sheila Spaeth Professor at Stanford Law School and professor (by courtesy) of English and comparative literature at Stanford University. Her recent books include The Oxford Handbook of Law and Humanities, coedited with Simon Stern and Maks Del Mar (Oxford University Press, 2020), and Theaters of Pardoning (Cornell University Press, 2019).