Arbitrariness concerns the controls on an act, not its consequences

Evidence

An act can’t be inculpatory unless it was voluntary (done consciously), so one can’t be held accountable for acts done while sleepwalking, for example. But whether the actor consciously intended a wrongful consequence of a voluntary act—whether the outcome was intentional—goes to the degree of culpability. The first term looks at the nature of the act itself, the second at the motive behind the act. — Bryan A. Garner, Jeff Newman, Tiger Jackson, The Redbook, 1214 (#expands, via linked claim)

Power is not arbitrary, on this second view, to the extent that it is directly or indirectly controlled by the concerned persons or groups themselves. In an example offered by Pettit (2012, 57–58), suppose Andrea has given Bob the keys to her alcohol cupboard, with strict instructions that no matter how much she pleads, he is not to return them except on twenty-four hours notice. Since Bob must answer to Andrea for his conduct in this regard, his power over her is not arbitrary. In roughly the same way, the power of the state over its citizens will not be arbitrary provided the people have an equal share in controlling how their state exercises its power. — Frank Lovett, Republicanism, 33 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Republican ‘arbitrariness’ means sheer lack of control, not injustice. — Frank Lovett, Republicanism, 34; Laws should be selected through contest and testing rather than consensual design — Philip Pettit, Republicanism: A Theory of Freedom and…, 1271; Voluntariness concerns the act, intent concerns the motive. — Bryan A. Garner, Jeff Newman, Tiger Jackson, The Redbook: A Manual on Legal Style,…, 1214 (+2 more)

Related

• Republican ‘arbitrariness’ means sheer lack of control, not injustice. (similarity 0.83)
• Power counts as non-arbitrary when those subject to it control how it is exercised. (similarity 0.83)
• An act is arbitrary when chosen without tracking affected parties’ interests (similarity 0.80)

Broader Connections

• An act is arbitrary when chosen without tracking affected parties’ interests #expands (0.82)
• Voluntariness concerns the act, intent concerns the motive. #expands (0.80) — Bryan A. Garner, Jeff Newman, Tiger Jackson, The Redbook, 1214
• Power counts as non-arbitrary when those subject to it control how it is exercised. #expands (0.80) — Frank Lovett, Republicanism, 33