This book, based on the Tanner lectures on Human Values that Justice Stephen Breyer delivered at Harvard University in November 2004, defines the term “active liberty” as a sharing of the nation’s sovereign authority with its citizens. Regarding the Constitution as a guide for the application of basic American principles to a living and changing society rather than as an arsenal of rigid legal means for binding and restricting it, Justice Breyer argues that the genius of the Constitution rests not in any static meaning it might have had in a world that is dead and gone, but in the adaptability of its great principles to cope with current problems.

Giving us examples of this approach in the areas of free speech, federalism, privacy, affirmative action, statutory interpretation, and administrative law, Justice Breyer states that courts should take greater account of the Constitution’s democratic nature when they interpret constitutional and statutory texts. He also insists that the people, through participation in community life, can and must develop the experience necessary to govern their own affairs. His distinctive contribution to the federalism debate is his claim that deference to congressional power can actually promote democratic participation rather than thwart it. He argues convincingly that although Congress is not perfect, it has done a better job than either the executive or judicial branches at balancing the conflicting views of citizens across the nation, especially during times of national crisis. With a fine appreciation for complexity, Breyer reminds all Americans that Congress, rather than the courts, is the place to resolve policy disputes.

Active Liberty is a declaration of the first importance, made by a judge often regarded as one of the court’s most brilliant members.

Stephen G. B reyer is an associate justice of the united states s upreme court, where he has served since 1994. He was educa ted at stanford university, was a marshall scholar at magdalen college, oxford, and re -ceived his LL.B. from Harvard Law school. He was a clerk for s upreme court Justice arthur J. Goldberg of the u.s. supreme court from 1964 to 1965. He has been a professor of law at Harvard and a professor at the Kennedy school of Government. He has also been a visiting professor at the college of Law, sydney, australia, and at the university of rome. He is a fellow of the american academy of arts and sciences, and a member of the american Law Institute and the american Bar association. Prior to his appointment to the supreme court he served as judge and later as chief judge of the u.s. court of appeals for the First circuit. His pub -lished works include The Federal Power commission and the regulation of Energy (with Paul mac avoy, 1974); regulation and Its reform (1982); and Breaking the vicious circle: toward Effective risk regulation (1993).