The classical Lockean picture and its difficulties

These lectures are about private property and the Rule of Law. But, instead of starting with abstract definitions of these terms, I want to begin with a case. It’s a 1992 decision of the Supreme Court of the United States, Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council . Like many American property cases, it concerns the application of what we call the “Takings Clause” of the Fifth Amendment. These lectures are not about American constitutional law and I won’t ask you to venture very far into the morass that constitutes American Takings Clause jurisprudence. It is a mess and, if only you knew how much of a mess, you would thank me for steering us away from this aspect of litigation. But the facts in Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council are going to be very helpful for our discussion of ownership and its relation to the Rule of Law.