The World Justice Project

Domestic Mainstreaming of the Rule of Law

Participants in the North Carolina state mainstreaming meeting discuss the rule of law's impact in their communities.

The rule of law needs to be strengthened in the United States as it does around the world. To promote that effort, a kickoff "mainstreaming" meeting was held in Washington, DC in February 2007. Now, state and local bar associations around the country are designing state-level multidisciplinary outreach meetings that can identify multidisciplinary partnerships for strengthening the rule of law at the state and local levels.

Six state-level meetings have already been held, attended by business people, community service leaders, educators, healthcare professionals, judges, lawyers, politicians, and religious figures. Among the concerns voiced at the meetings:

• Businesses need laws that are clearly stated, reliable, predictable and accessible.
• The rule of law helped advance civil rights.
• Educators should play a role in making the processes of law more understandable to all.

Over a dozen more states have set dates for multidisciplinary meetings this spring (see sidebar), and many others are in the process. Extensive planning materials (PDF) are available to guide the state-level meetings, and resource materials for a "Dialogue on the Rule of Law (PDF)" have been prepared for use in state mainstreaming meetings and in schools across the U.S.

For information on a multidisciplinary outreach meeting in your state, please contact Mr. William Allen at hwallen@allenlawfirmpc.com.