Table 1:

theories of justice

Utilitarian–To each person according to rules and actions that maximize social utility.

Libertarian–To each person a maximum of liberty and property resulting from the exercise of liberty rights and participation in fair free-market exchanges.

Communitarian–To each person according to principles of fair distribution derived from conceptions of the good developed in moral communities.

Egalitarian–To each person an equal measure of liberty and access to the goods in life that every rational person values.

Capabilities–To each person the means necessary for the exercise of capabilities essential for a flourishing life.

Well-being–To each person the means for the realization of core dimensions of well-being.

Source: Beauchamp TL, Childress JF. Principles of Biomedical Ethics, 7th ed. New York: Oxford University Press 2013, pp. 252–3.