“Over the last few years, the Roberts Court has repeatedly obstructed precedent,” Professor Bill Watson states in his new article, “Obstructing Precedent,” published in the Northwestern University Law Review. Obstructing precedent, he explains, is when a court does not cooperate with its prior self in building a coherent body of law; however, while it is concerning, there is nothing inherently illegitimate about the Court obstructing precedent.
