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Excerpts from the Restatement (First) on Conflicts (1953)
There are two primary approaches to horizontal (meaning between-state) choice of law, also called "conflicts" of law.
Until around the 1950s, all states followed the "First Restatement" approach. (We will talk briefly about what a "Restatement" is in class.) About ten or so states continue to use it today. It is also called the "vested rights" approach. The first case we read, the Great Alabama Railroad case, exemplifies this approach.
Beginning in the 1950s (roughly), many states began to transition to following the Second Restatement approach. The Second Restatement actually encapsulates several different theories. Depending on which of these theories predominates, you might hear labels such as "interests analysis" or "center of gravity." The second and third cases we read exemplify this approach.
Excerpts from the First and Second Restatements, dealing with torts, appear below.
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