Advertising in the Garden of Eden

Bartholomew presents a provocative argument for reforming the Uniform Commercial Code's Article 9 governing secured transactions. The author advocates for reconceptualizing secured transactions law to address corporate responsibility and human rights concerns. Bartholomew questions whether legal scholars should advocate for normative legal reforms disconnected from political viability, examining tensions between theoretical legal analysis and practical implementation. The essay explores the role of legal academia in proposing reforms by considering examples of successful and failed legal innovations. Bartholomew examines how legal scholarship theorizes about law while remaining constrained by practical limitations of implementation. The author grapples with tensions between academic freedom to pursue theoretical inquiries and the responsibility to advocate only for implementable reforms. The piece reflects on what constitutes legitimate legal scholarship and how scholars navigate between theoretical contributions and practical legal change.

Topics: Legal Theory · Contracts

Keywords: secured transactions · UCC Article 9 · legal reform · corporate responsibility · legal scholarship