Morality, Law and the Duty to Act: Creating a Common Law Duty to Act Modeled After the Responsibility to Protect Doctrine

Authors

McCall C. Carter, Washington University School of Law

Publication Title

Washington University Jurisprudence Review

Abstract

Part I will examine the history and philosophy of the American common law “no duty to act rule.” Part II will cover the history and the development of the Responsibility to Protect doctrine in international law, arguments for and against the doctrine, and its underlying philosophy. This Article will argue that even though the underlying philosophies of American and international law differ, there is no reason why the American system cannot join the rest of the world in creating a legal duty to act.

Recommended Citation

McCall C. Carter, Morality, Law and the Duty to Act: Creating a Common Law Duty to Act Modeled After the Responsibility to Protect Doctrine, 2 Wash. U. Jur. Rev. 138 (2010).
Available at: https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/law_jurisprudence/vol2/iss1/5