The American Law Institute (
ALI) was established in
1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of American
common law and its adaptation to changing social needs. The ALI drafts, approves, and publishes
restatements of the law, model codes, and other proposals for law reform. The ALI is currently headquartered in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, next to the campus of the
University of Pennsylvania.
Restatements are essentially codifications of common law judge-made doctrines that develop gradually over time because of the principle of stare decisis. Although Restatements are not binding authority in and of themselves, they are highly persuasive because they are formulated over several years with extensive input from law professors, practicing attorneys, and judges. When done right, they reflect the consensus of the American legal community as to what the law is (and in some areas, what it should become).
Courts are under no formal obligation to adopt Restatement sections as the law. But they often do, because such sections accurately restate the already-established law in that jurisdiction, or on issues of first impression, are persuasive in terms of demonstrating what is the current trend that other jurisdictions are following.
In December 1923, Benjamin Cardozo explained the importance of the Restatements in a lecture at Yale Law School
