(a) Each person has the same indefeasible claim to a fully adequate scheme of equal basic liberties, which scheme is compatible with the same scheme of liberties for all and In part II, he moves on to his principles of justice, revising them from his earlier edition, which now read (p. 42): In part I, he discusses several fundamental ideas, all of which are familiar to a reader of his earlier book as well as Political Liberalism (1995): a well-ordered society the basic structure of society the original position free and equal persons public justification reflective equilibrium and overlapping consensus. It was written shortly before his death in 2002. Rawls is responding to criticism as well as adding further thought to his earlier A Theory of Justice. Justice as Fairness is a revision of Rawls's A Theory of Justice (1971). A previous article with a similar title was written in 1985. Prior to publication, many versions were circulated in typescript and much of the material was delivered by Rawls in lectures when he taught courses covering his own work at Harvard University.

This shorter summary of the main arguments of Rawls' political philosophy was edited by Erin Kelly. The released book was edited by Erin Kelly while Rawls was in declining health during his final years. The restatement was made largely in response to the significant number of critiques and essays written about Rawls's 1971 book on this subject.

Justice as Fairness: A Restatement is a 2001 book of political philosophy by the philosopher John Rawls, published as a restatement of his 1971 classic A Theory of Justice (1971).

A Theory of Justice by John Rawls