Dworkin’s characterization wrongly equates pragmatism with act utilitarianism.

Evidence

An implication readers might draw from Dworkin’s statement in Law’s Empire that “the pragmatist thinks judges should always do the best they can for the future, in the circumstances, unchecked by any need to respect or secure consistency in principle with what other officials have done or will do.” … This is an impoverished conception of pragmatism, one that merges pragmatism with act utilitarianism. — Richard A. Posner, What Has Pragmatism to Offer Law?, 119

Categorization

• XREF: Direct engagement with Dworkin’s Law’s Empire; connects to the reader’s broader jurisprudence literature.
• QUESTION: Worth pursuing how Dworkin’s pragmatist differs from the systemic pragmatism Posner defends at 117.