StephanKinsella.com

In grad school and law school while at LSU (1988–1991) I wrote various columns and letters to the editor to the LSU Daily Reveille ¹ and also to the local paper, then The Morning Advocate, now The Advocate.

I just ran across one I wrote that was published Thurs., Sep. 28, 1989, under the title “Vote against taxes and power.” Like most of the things I published in those days it’s a bit cringe. In that letter, I went through 13 proposed amendments to the Louisiana Constitution coming up for a vote and suggested how to vote on them, and why. I basically said “vote not” if it seemed to increase taxes or restrict liberties. [continue reading…]

1.  My Stint at the LSU Daily Reveille. [↩]

Below is the “A draft constitution for the state in the third millennium,” by Prince Hans-Adam of Liechtenstein, from Prince Hans-Adam, The State in the Third Millennium (2009; pdf). See also David Beattie, Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein – a biography: With an overview of the history of the House of Liechtenstein (2020).

See also discussion of other libertarian and related “constitutions” and so on in KOL359 | State Constitutions vs. the Libertarian Private Law Code (PFS 2021),  KOL345 | Kinsella’s Libertarian “Constitution” or: State Constitutions vs. the Libertarian Private Law Code (PorcFest 2021) and The Universal Principles of Liberty. [continue reading…]

Bert Schwitters alerted me to his book Liberating Liberty and upon my request, sent me a PDF. The book is apparently available only here, not on Amazon, and not in ebook form, and not available in PDF, epub, or other form online either. He describes some of his views and his book here too: Liberty and Libertarians. The book appears to have a subtitle but it is not clear what it is—perhaps “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness and The Creator of Man,” but it’s not clear. This is obviously an amateur effort.

I wrote this back:

On your book, I honestly do not know why people would spend time compiling a message about liberty–that you will never make money on, so you are doing it only to spread the word–and then trap it behind a paywall and copyright. Why not just post it online so everyone can read it, or do you only want to reach rich westerners? I’m not criticizing, I am just continually mystified by the way some libertarians think. See: On Leading by Example and the Power of Attraction (Open Source Publishing, Creative Commons, Public Domain Publishing) and Authors: Don’t Make the Buddy Holly Mistake.

[continue reading…]

[Spanish translation below; photos below from signing]

I’m pleased to announce the results of a project I’ve been working on with other libertarians for some time: The Universal Principles of Liberty (finalized and published Aug. 14, 2025).

I’d like to explain here how this came about.

I’ve been a libertarian since I was in high school and increasingly involved over the years learning about liberty and have devoted a lot of time to developing libertarian ideas, by my speaking and writing, ¹ and even in various forms of activism. Yes, despite my regular criticisms of activists and activism, I of course have participated in activism of various types—debating with family and friends and others, voting, participating in various groups; joining the Libertarian Party years ago and now serving on its Judicial Committee. ² [continue reading…]

1. See biographical pieces here and bio here; Stephan Kinsella, Legal Foundations of a Free Society (Houston, Texas: Papinian Press, 2023) [LFFS]; Kinsella on Liberty Podcast. [↩]
2. Member of the Judicial Committee of the Libertarian Party (2022–2026; Chair Jan. 1, 2023–July 31, 2023). [↩]

[From my Webnote series]

Related:

• Dualism, Monism, Scientism, Causality, Teleology: Hoppe, Mises, Rothbard
• The Great Fractional Reserve/Freebanking Debate
• Fractional-Reserve Banking, Contracts of Deposit, and the Title-Transfer Theory of Contract
• On Coinbase, Bitcoin, Fractional-Reserve Banking, and Irregular Deposits
• UK Proposal for Banking Reform: Fractional-Reserve Banking versus Deposits and Loans
• Musings on Fractional-Reserve Banking in a Bitcoin Age; Physicalist Shock Absorber Metaphors
• Michael S. Milano, “Privacy and Fungibility: The Forgotten Virtues of Sound Money,” Mises Wire (07/05/2025)

It’s time someone do this. I was hoping someone else had or would, but I’ve given up finding anyone comprehensive and solid on this. I guess I’ll have to do it, if I find time. Maybe I can coax Bob Murphy into doing it with he: I am decent on economic methodology; he is deeper and better. We are both solid on austro-libertarianism: he is a libertarian, and I am the libertarian. And he is probably decent on law, and I am deeper and better. I may approach El Bobborino about this at some point. Or maybe Hülsmann or Hoppe. Or Konrad Graf. ¹ [continue reading…]

1. Konrad Graf, “Action-Based Jurisprudence: Praxeological Legal Theory in Relation to Economic Theory, Ethics, and Legal Practice,” Libertarian Papers 3, art. no. 19 (2011); idem, Bitcoins, the regression theorem, and that curious but unthreatening empirical world February 27, 2013; Are Bitcoins Ownable?: Property Rights, IP Wrongs, and Legal-Theory Implications [PDF].  [↩]

When spanking and other issues are debated by libertarians, someone invariably brings up the issue of grabbing or touching someone in other contexts: for example, if you see a child or stranger about to run into traffic or into the path of a speeding bus, you might grab them to save them. Or you might have to grab or physically prevent a child from doing something harmful like sticking their hand into boiling water, and so on; you might even need to slap them to get their attention in an emergency situation. In these cases the third party is not trying to damage or punish or discipline the stranger or child; from it.

For defenders of spanking, they will mindlessly trot these non-analogous situations out in an attempt to justify spanking. [continue reading…]

I have mentioned before my year obtaining an LL.M. in international business law at the University of London, 1991–1992, after law school. ¹ In that course I was required to take at least half my courses from King’s College London, my “base” school, and was free to take other courses from the four other University of London law schools that were then part of this program. I other half of my courses at the London School of Economics law school. ² My favorite course in the program was “The International Law of Natural Resources,” taught by Professor Rosalyn Higgins at LSE—now Dame Higgins and later the first woman on the International Court of Justice. ³

[continue reading…]

1. See various biographical pieces on my publications page, including Alan D. Bergman, Adopting Liberty: The Stephan Kinsella Story (2025), New Publisher, Co-Editor for my Legal Treatise, and how I got started with legal publishing, The Start of my Legal Career: Past, Present and Future: Survival Stories of Lawyers, KOL455 | Haman Nature Hn 109: Philosophy, Rights, Libertarian and Legal Careers,  KOL139 | Power and Market Report with Albert Lu: Law, Careers, Scholarship. [↩]
2. My friend Paul Comeaux and I, both applying to the same LL.M. program at the University of London, applied to four of the participating law schools: King’s College London (KCL), the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), Queen Mary and Westfield College, and University College London (UCL); we did not apply to the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). We were both accepted into King’s, UCL, and Queen Mary, but were informed that the LSE decision would take longer. As we were told that local college housing was filling up, we both went ahead and selected King’s as our base school. [↩]
3. United Nations, “International Court of Justice names its first female president,” UN News (6 February 2006). Higgins received the Balzan Prize in 2007. It is her classic work Problems and Process: International Law and How We Use It (Oxford, 1994) which I review below. See also her Themes and Theories: Selected Essays, Speeches and Writings in International Law (Oxford, 2009; (Oxford link). Her “dissenting opinion in the ICJ’s advisory opinion on the Legality of the Threat or the Use of Nuclear Weapons has been widely criticised by some legal scholars.” See Kinsella, On the Non Liquet in Libertarian Theory and Armchair Theorizing, Advisory Opinion on the Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons, and “Dissenting Opinion of Judge Higgins, Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons, Advisory Opinion, I.C.J. Reports 1996 (I), p. 583,” in Themes and Theories, ch. 9. [↩]

Related:

• Hoppe, From Nation to Household: The Middle American Illusions of Sam Francis (and Pat Buchanan)
• Hoppe, Libertarianism and the Alt-Right: In Search of a Libertarian Strategy for Social Change (2017)
• Kinsella, The Three Fusionisms: Old, New, and Cautious
• Kinsella, Hoppe on Covenant Communities and Advocates of Alternative Lifestyles
• Hoppe, The Property And Freedom Society—Reflections After Five Years, The Libertarian Standard (June 10, 2010); also published at VDare and as ch. 24 in The Great Fiction; video

Hoppe, The Property And Freedom Society—Reflections After Five Years:

This, then, was the ultimate reason for the breakup of the libertarian-conservative alliance accomplished with the John Randolph Club: that while the libertarians were willing to learn their cultural lesson the conservatives did not want to learn their economics.

[continue reading…]

The business community in Texas has encouraged the State of Texas to form specialized new business trial courts as well as “the first operational appellate level business court in the United States, the Fifteenth Court of Appeals.” ¹ This is a good illustration that civilized people, and businesses, value working courts, dispute resolution and legal certainty. It also illustrates the importance of federalism and states attempting to have reliable legal systems in part to attract corporate business, relocations, and incorporation in the state. [continue reading…]

1. Wikipedia, Texas Business Court. [↩]

[From my Webnote series]

Related/cited:

• The Universal Principles of Liberty (Aug. 14, 2025)
• On the Non Liquet in Libertarian Theory and Armchair Theorizing
• Examples of Libertarian Law vs. Louisiana vs. French vs. Common Law: Consideration and Formalities
• Roman Law and Hypothetical Cases
• “Legislation and the Discovery of Law in a Free Society,” in Legal Foundations of a Free Society (Houston: Papinian Press, 2023) [LFFS]
• KOL020 | “Libertarian Legal Theory: Property, Conflict, and Society: Lecture 3: Applications I: Legal Systems, Contract, Fraud” (Mises Academy, 2011)
• Legislative Positivism and Rationalism in the Louisiana and French Civil Codes
• Logical and Legal Positivism
• Federal Judges Aren’t Real Judges

On Commentators and Codes in Private Law, State Law, and Libertarian Law

I’ve pointed out previously the role of commentators and codification in the private law of systems such as the Roman law, the modern European Roman-based civil law, and the Anglo-American common law, and speculated also as to the role commentators, codification, and codes would play in a completely decentralized, legislation-free libertarian private-law legal system of a free society. [continue reading…]

Related:

• The Blockean Proviso
• Van Dun on Freedom versus Property and Hostile Encirclement
• Adam Haman and Matt Sands on Immigration, Property Rights, and Hostile Encirclement
• Van Dun, Barnett on Freedom vs. Property
• Dominiak & Wysocki, “Libertarianism, Defense of Property, and Absolute Rights”

Delightful discussion with Matt Sands of the “Nations of Sanity” and Adam Haman of Haman Nature, Let’s talk property rights, human liberty, and Nations of Sanity, shall we?; both friends of mine (Adam an in-person close one) whose podcasts I’ve appeared on. ¹ In fact one of them had to do with one of the issues they discussed, hostile encirclement: KOL426 | Discussing Immigration and Homesteading Donuts with Matthew Sands of Nations of Sanity. [continue reading…]

1. e.g. KOL450 | Together Strong IP Discussion (Matthew Sands of Nations of Sanity feat Econ Bro); KOL469 | Haman Nature Hn 149: Tabarrok on Patents, Price Controls, and Drug Reimportation. [↩]