The Dangers of Symbolic Legislation: Perceptions and Realities of the New Burden-of-Proof Rules

Authors

Steve R. Johnson, Florida State University College of Law

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

3-1999

Publication Title

Iowa Law Review

Publication Title (Abbreviation)

Iowa Law Review

Volume

84

Issue

3

First Page

413

Last Page

497

Abstract

There is a growing political science and legal literature on the use of symbolism in the political and legislative process. Tax law is a natural arena for such inquiry as tax law touches virtually every type of human interaction, is heavily value-driven, and is a perennial political battleground. This article examines a recent tax law change-the enactment of new burden-of-proof rules in the summer of 1998 – concluding that it is a pernicious exercise in symbolic legislation.

Rights

© 1999 Steve R. Johnson

Comments

First published in Iowa Law Review.

Faculty Biography

http://www.law.fsu.edu/our-faculty/profiles/johnson

Recommended Citation

Steve R. Johnson, The Dangers of Symbolic Legislation: Perceptions and Realities of the New Burden-of-Proof Rules, 84 Iowa Law Review 413 (1999),
Available at: https://ir.law.fsu.edu/articles/253