By Leslie King O’Neal
Happy Law Day!
May 1 is “Law Day,” honoring the “Rule of Law” in the United States. President Dwight D. Eisenhower established “Law Day” in 1958 to celebrate the rule of law in a free society.[i] The American Bar Association and many state and local bar associations mark the occasion with speeches and classes.
What is the Rule of Law?
The rule of law is a principle under which all people, institutions, and entities are accountable to laws that are:
- Publicly promulgated
- Equally enforced
- Independently adjudicated
- And consistent with international human rights principles.[ii]
The Rule of Law and the American Dream
Each year the ABA suggests a Law Day theme. This year’s theme is “The Rule of Law and the American Dream.” “The rule of law—the idea that no person is above the law—is what ensures the rights of the people to live their lives as freely as possible and to pursue their dreams.”[iii]
King Charles III’s Speech to Congress Highlights Magna Carta
In his recent address to Congress, King Charles III noted the importance of the Magna Carta and the Rule of Law in the United States and in the United Kingdom. [iv] He highlighted the U.S. founders, who, “by balancing contending forces and drawing strength in diversity, . . . united 13 disparate colonies to forge a nation on the revolutionary idea of ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.’ They carried with them, and carried forward, the great inheritance of the British Enlightenment – as well as the ideals which had an even deeper history in English common law and Magna Carta.”[v]
The Magna Carta and the Rule of Law
Signed by King John in June 1215, the Magna Carta was a charter of English liberties.[vi] It declared the sovereign subject to the “rule of law” and documented the liberties of “free men.” The Magna Carta is the “foundation of individual rights in Anglo-American jurisprudence.”[vii] Its most famous clauses were included in many later documents:
No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land. To no one will we sell, to no one will we deny or delay right or justice.[viii]
King Charles noted that the U.S. Supreme Court has cited the Magna Carta in at least 160 cases since 1789.[ix]
Rule of Law: The Foundation for Economic Success
Not merely a lofty legal principle, the rule of law is critical to commercial and economic growth. As King Charles stated, “The rule of law: the certainty of stable and accessible rules, an independent judiciary resolving disputes and delivering impartial justice. These features created the conditions for centuries of unmatched economic growth in our two countries.”[x]
The Rule of Law and ADR
As a creature of contract, arbitration depends on the rule of law. If contracts are not enforced, there can be no arbitration. As the College of Commercial Arbitrators stated in its amicus brief filed in Perkins Coie, LLP v. U.S. Dept. of Justice, “Commercial arbitration does not exist in a vacuum; it is part of an ecosystem of arbitrators, businesses, individuals, lawyers, law firms, and judges, all of whom rely on adherence to the rule of law.”[xi] Arbitration awards depend on courts to confirm and to enforce them. Thus, “It is essential for the commercial order that arbitrated disputes be resolved by a mutually understood and regular process . . . .”[xii]
Similarly, mediation depends on courts enforcing settlement agreements between parties. Parties may be reluctant to engage in arbitration or mediation without confidence that parties will abide by their contracts and courts will enforce agreements.
Takeaways:
Before the Revolutionary War, citizens of the colonies (which later became states) recognized the Rule of Law as the foundation for their legal systems. The Rule of Law is not merely a lofty principle; it is the underpinning for our economic success. Arbitration and mediation cannot exist without the rule of law to enforce their agreements. On Law Day (and every day), lawyers, arbitrators and mediators should uphold the Rule of Law.
[i] https://www.uscourts.gov/about-federal-courts/educational-resources/annual-observances/law-day
[ii] https://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-activities/overview-rule-law
[iii] https://www.americanbar.org/groups/public_education/law-day/
[iv] The full transcript of King Charles III’s speech to Congress is available here: https://apnews.com/article/king-charles-iii-us-congress-speech-9ff638ae63a41289dbd9ebfbb550e40e?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=share
[v] Id.
[vi] Magna Carta was, in 1215, a failure. The Pope annulled it as a shameful document exacted under duress by barons who had acted as judges in their own cause and had effectively dethroned the King.
Enter the Charter’s hero: William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, the most powerful man in the kingdom and famously loyal. He had mediated between King and barons all through 1215. When John died in October 1216, William became Regent of the boy-king Henry III. William re-issued Magna Carta, in a more conciliatory form, under his own seal. He regathered the baronage to the young King’s side. He defeated the French in person, when he was over 70 years old, at the Battle of Lincoln. William He then re-issued the Charter once more. William Marshal died in 1219 and was buried in the Temple Church in London. His effigy still lies in the Round Church there. https://www.templechurch.com/temp/since-1215-draft
[vii] Encyclopedia Brittanica, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Magna-Carta
[viii] https://www.templechurch.com/temp/since-1215-draft
[ix] The Magna Carta rule of law principles were included in the General Assembly of Maryland (1639); the Body of Liberties of Massachusetts (1641), and the U.S. Constitution, Amendments 5, 6 and 14. Id.
[x] King Charles III, address to joint session of Congress, supra, note iv.
[xi] Circuit Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit,(Case #25-5241, Document #2167085), Amicus brief, at p. 9. https://www.ccarbitrators.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/CCA-brief-as-filed.pdf
[xii] Id.
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